Retake
by metroanime
Summary: an epilogue that got out of hand. Trying to make the best of a bad timeline.
1. Chapter 1: Batter Up

RETAKE:   
  
An unintended fic which is developing despite that.   
  
------   
  
Grey grumbled. This was hardly new. He was not as whiny as Shinji Ikari or as given to theatrics as Soun Tendo, but he was hardly a stoic and often feeling put upon.   
  
He had been told that he had one more chance, and that was to take the test that he had turned down quite some time ago. He'd said there was absolutely no chance of success. He'd been told to give it a try at least.   
  
Considering *whose* office the request had come from, he really hadn't thought about declining.   
  
Which brought him here, into a Ranma timeline. He didn't know *when* but he knew *where* and who. Where was Nerima, Furinkan ward. Which made this all suck wind. He was an American who was in Japan due to a Japanese talent scout, at least according to the papers he had.   
  
That test had been to be Akane Tendo's boyfriend in that most shameless tradition of inserts. He had been of the opinion that being fed to carnivorous worms was less onerous. Even after that event, when he had gone through just such a fate on a world known as Gehenna, he had felt that he'd gotten the better of the deal.   
  
In fact, Grey didn't exactly enjoy being *in* a "Ranma" timeline. Insane and ridiculously powerful martial artists were common in such timelines, and as these were all somewhat obsessive and violent, he felt he didn't fit in too well. He would much rather deal with the "Oh My Goddess" crowd (providing one can get Urd away from the potions), or a "Sailor Moon" timeline (despite how severely underage they were - most were at least nice and capable of carrying on a conversation that didn't involve the words 'die' or 'kill' coming up frequently), or "Tenchi" (who might be a weenie in some respects, but he was nice), or "El Hazard" (he'd gotten along famously with Makoto Mizuhara the one time they had crossed paths), or "Slayers" (he hadn't gotten along well with Lina, but he'd found a sort of kinship with Zelgadis) or...   
  
Actually there were quite a few "anime series based" timelines he'd rather be in. And the closer to a mainline this "Ranmaverse" was, the less happy he'd been about it.   
  
The first thing he'd done was find a "Manga No Mori" - one of the more premiere manga shops. And while his command of Japanese had been largely disabled, the pictures could tell him some things immediately. A Rumiko Takahashi *had* written some popular comics - Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku, and something he didn't recognize involving samurai. No sign of "Sailor Moon" but there was a manga series involving superpower granting sailorsuits from outerspace, something that reminded him a *lot* of the old "Greatest American Hero" series retooled for a Japanese audience. Which meant this *could* be a universe with "Sailor Moon" characters. He wasn't sure he could take meeting them after the last adventure, but he probably should check it out when he could.   
  
The second thing, as it was early in the morning on a schoolday, was finding Furinkan High School.   
  
Grey groaned. There was this huge crowd of boys in sports gear waiting around the front gate of Furinkan High School. So he was at the beginning of the series, he'd be running into Ranma, and likely get his clock cleaned. Of course, considering the Butterfly Effect, he'd likely have maybe one or two days before his knowledge of the series became completely useless. Though there was no guarantee that this was a baseline universe anyway.   
  
Kuno began yelling something with gaijin in it. Figured that his Japanese was so stilted and archaic that only one word in a dozen was recognizable.   
  
The crowd moved. Grey smiled. At last, something to concentrate on besides how much he *hated* being stuck in this situation.   
  
He had some talents, but as this *was* a Ranma timeline, he had to do it in martial arts terms. His papers indicated that he was Greylle Shard, practitioner of Martial Arts Baseball and Heir to the Seven Dragons Style. Since he was not at all fond of baseball, he could see someone's sense of irony showing. As for the "Seven Dragons" - he had no idea what that was supposed to be so he'd just make something up as he went along.   
  
*Pop!*   
  
Now holding a baseball bat, Grey made use of kendo and sword techniques drilled into him from the Valkyries. If he allowed *this* crowd to defeat him, it would be a direct insult to his teachers - and they'd be *really* ticked. Of course, this kind of martial arts universe meant a special attack should be called out. Maybe... got it.   
  
The baseball bat was not a particularly bad choice as far as a martial arts weapon. It was fairly well balanced, you could use kendo or jo stick techniques with minor modifications, and you could really thwack someone silly with it.   
  
"Hailstorm Defense!" Hmmm. He'd have to work out some better attack names. He ought to try and keep to a baseball motif whenever possible.   
  
It sheared through a hockey stick to slam into a face mask with enough force to shatter hard plastic, spun and was then brought endwise into a sumo's stomach, swung up and brought underneath a karate practitioner's chin, and rebounded off a soccer player's ribs.   
  
A blocked bokken was the warning that Kuno himself had entered the fray. Another special technique seemed mandated. Maybe something like "Lightspeed Grounder!"   
  
Kuno ended up skipping across the school like a stone across the surface of a pond. Grey decided he'd overdone it a bit. He had to leave Kuno available to fight Ranma later. Uh oh. There was always one more, if that danger sense going off was any indication. Might as well play to the crowd and not even look, just wait then backswing.   
  
*WHAM!*   
  
Deciding to borrow a move from Bob Hope, Grey made a show as if his bat was a sword and he was slipping it into a sheath, then bowing elaborately.   
  
Waitaminute. *Something* was wrong. There was a lot of muttering going on.   
  
Grey slowly turned, this cold hollow feeling starting up in his stomach. There was a girl with long black hair, out cold on the ground.   
  
He sighed and picked her up, heading for the Nurse's office. "i *told* them this wouldn't work out."   
  
--------   
  
Akane slowly focussed in on the ceiling. Her head hurt. A lot.   
  
"Are you okay, Tendo-kun?" Greylle wanted to use the most formal and distant address possible.   
  
"Who? What?" Akane sat up and the wet cloth from her forehead dropped into her lap.   
  
"I student. Yomiuri Giants want me study over here, scouted out in America. Not familiar Japanese custom."   
  
Akane glared at the boy, who was curiously *not* looking at her. "So what are you doing here?"   
  
"Supposed attend Furinkan. Find fight first day. You okay. I leave now."   
  
Akane frowned at the departing boy's back. She didn't have time for this. It was already...   
  
"ACK!"   
  
-------   
  
Universes which have an RN or RM tag usually have an individual named Ranma Saotome. They also have, quite often, most of the usual characters associated with Ranma Saotome.   
  
Due to something called the Law Of Conservation Of Realities, quite a few of these had other elements that never quite crossed orbits with Nerima Japan. These elements existed in a number of other realities as well, without being crossovers or alternates, because the elements in question rarely directly mixed.   
  
In the typical Ranma universe, for example, there were various elements of magic that never got properly explained. Who built the koi rods, or what created Jusenkyo, or even who eventually dealt with that large oni and returned Happosai back to normal after they'd attacked California.   
  
There *were* spellcasters and magical artificiers in such typical "Ranmaverses" - they just preferred quiet areas where there weren't a lot of ridiculously powerful and obsessive martial artists to muck up their property.   
  
For various reasons, these "persons of magic" tended to congregate. For one thing it was awfully handy if one of your experiments got loose to be able to call up your neighbors and ask for a hand. For another, one could only properly gripe and moan about the results of your latest incantation with someone who understood what the blazes you were talking about.   
  
In some universes, this congregation of magi would end up in Pillow Creek, Minnesota. In others, a small place in Utah called Willow Brook. In this particular universe, this community of 238 wizards, magi, artificiers, and such were found in the United States. In a state called Virginia, and in a small rural community known as Pungo, to be precise. A small town on the verge of vanishing, a tiny bit of old fashioned Americana tucked away where most road maps couldn't find it.   
  
Which was how the wizards, magi, artificiers, and other magic types wanted it.   
  
When one gets to a certain level of power, your typical magi suddenly realizes a Universal Truth. That Truth being that most of the motives typically applied to such individuals are actually rather stupid for someone who is trying to unravel the Secrets Of The Universe. Summoning Demons, for example, leads to a short lifespan and one associates with the most dreadful fellows. Conquering The World was rather silly as well, the paperwork and internal politics leeching the joy from the accomplishment quickly. And so on.   
  
So, for wizards and magi and the like, when they reached that level of power, they retired. Summon up some gold? No problem, but why? Use a Copy Item spell and make a half dozen Playstation 2, or a Temporary Manifestation of the latest computer game if that's your fancy. Want that new pop singer's newest CD? Just as simple.   
  
No, material wealth and goals became ludicrous when you'd mastered the basics of matter manipulation.   
  
So one usually sat back and relaxed, cuddling nymphs or other summoned spirits, while trying to work out some really nifty spell or item, or one just puttered around in one's workshop and see what developed. Those at this stage of wizardry mostly didn't want to be bothered with the Mundanes, who tended to get terribly frightened or at least upstaged by nearly all powerful wizards.   
  
Still, they did tend to do things like keep an eye out for young wizards. The ones just learning their power tended to be a bit rambunctious and could get into all sorts of trouble.   
  
Which was why Hieronomus ("Harry") Bosch was roused from a decent nap by a glow on a map that told him that a low power mage had just appeared in Tokyo Japan.   
  
-------   
  
"Don't be silly, Yuka," Akane insisted. "He's a boy. Worse, he's American, so he's even more hormone-addled than the ones here."   
  
"But Akane, you *never* argued with anyone about Kuno's conditions. You just accepted them. So when he defeated you..." Yuka's voice trailed off as she noticed that throbbing vein on Akane's forehead.   
  
Akane took a deep breath, and realized she'd been doing that a *lot* lately. "I never accepted that 'defeat me to date me' crap from Kuno. The only reason I went along with it at *all* was because it was a decent workout. Frustrating as all, but a good workout."   
  
"And he's so tall and his shoulders," began Sayuri.   
  
"Not you too, Sayuri," complained Akane.   
  
"Don't forget his butt," said Yuka, nudging her compatriot and winking. "And that blond hair and those blue eyes make him look *so* exotic."   
  
"...perverts..." Akane mumbled, for once not referring to a boy with that particular epithet.   
  
"Class, we have a new student," the teacher said, interrupting the gossip. "He's a bit late, but considering that he's American, some problems in paperwork are to be expected. It says here..."   
  
Everyone came to attention as the teacher froze momentarily while reading his notes. Just the way he was staring at the paper and repeating "oh my kami" was enough to clue in even Hiroshi and Daisuke that something was up.   
  
"Teacher?" The class president decided to ask.   
  
The teacher turned and began to write things on the blackboard. Akane wasn't that much into baseball, but she did recognize "RBI" and a few of the other terms.   
  
"This boy was scouted out by the Yomiuri Giants in America," said the teacher, glasses gleaming in the flourescent lamps. "They signed him up for as soon as he graduates, and he's attending high school here so they can make sure he's ready for a position."   
  
"Oh no. Please no." Akane looked heavenwards. "Please not in *my* class."   
  
Sure enough, the tall blond boy entered the room and tried to bow. It came off shaky but passable. "Uhm. I... Greylle Shard is. Pleased to meet you. Aaaaaa!"   
  
Akane winced. The boy was making little warding gestures. Then he said very distinctly though under his breath in English "please don't make me sit next to her."   
  
"Shard-san, you'll sit next to Akane Tendo," said the teacher, ignoring the winces and pained expressions from both persons mentioned.   
  
-------   
  
Japanese classes had the teachers change with the subjects, but the classroom remain the same. The exceptions being PE and Home Ec.   
  
Whatever the case, now that he was a little over six feet tall, Greylle was relatively happy that he could stretch his legs from being cramped at a little desk.   
  
Unfortunately, this being his first day, the crowds had wanted to see exactly what the "gaijin tarento" (foreign talent) had.   
  
Which was tricky. Here he was supposed to be the Heir Of Martial Arts Baseball, and he hadn't played baseball in a very long time. All he had going for him was some martial arts training from valkyries and a few decades as a Ranma stand-in, the increased strength and toughness that came from being a dragon in human form, and some minor spellcasting abilities as a cleric. Preparing a few spells, he'd thought he'd need the help.   
  
First he'd done pitching.   
  
Naturally, he'd had time to think about this and come up with special manuever names which had to be spoken before unleashing them. When in Rome and all. So the "Dragon Thunder Pitch" had been a fastball, the "Dragon Spiral Dance" had been his double-curve pitch, his rolling slide was now dubbed the "Earth Dragon Wave" and so on. Incorporating dragons into baseball. For now at least.   
  
His fastball had caused the catcher to slam into the backstop, leaving flaming furrows where his feet had dragged from the force of impact. Greylle had then done a curve ball, a slider, and a double curve. Nothing special, though the double curve got some strange looks.   
  
Then had come batting. Draconic strength was sufficient that the baseball was now missing and presumed in geosynch orbit. One of the others, a grounder, was buried far enough that there was talk of getting a backhoe. Overall, a tentative success.   
  
Preoccupied, Greylle never noticed the guys in the trenchcoats and sunglasses in the bleachers.   
  
-------   
  
The mercenary middle Tendo daughter walked back to her classroom in deep thought, fitting all the pieces she'd just observed together.   
  
Nabiki had smirked and sat down to watch this "practice" when actually it was just everyone and their classmates wanting to see exactly how good the foreign talent was. Martial Arts Baseball? Yeah right!   
  
Nabiki's eyes had doubled in size and her jaw had dropped quite early in the demonstration.   
  
When the boy had announced "Dragon Thunder Pitch" she could have *sworn*, just like out of some sentai sports manga, that the foreign boy had been framed by a glowing blue-white dragon. The pitch had seen the dragon streaking across diamond, resolving into the ball just before it slammed into Honda's catcher's mitt. One of the guys in a trenchcoat had been pointing some kind of radar gun gadget, and Nabiki had noticed the guy had suddenly keeled over on reading the display.   
  
The "Dragon Spiral Dance" had been a pitch that had impossibly followed an "S" shape. The list had gone on for a good portion of the period, almost as if he was making things up as he went along. There had been strange pitches, batting techniques, base-stealing as a martial art, and other things that had occurred too fast for Nabiki to observe properly.   
  
The Baseball Coach had gone from "Damn gaijin infesting the school isn't going to be on Furinkan's team" to "Isn't life a beautiful thing now that we're going to beat the snot out of the other schools" after the first fifteen minutes.   
  
Nabiki kept track of a lot of things. One of which had been that prior to this little demonstration there had been muttering about cheating, or that Akane couldn't be given over to some gaijin no matter what the rules, or that Kuno had finally been hoisted by his own petard. Now it was how neat it was that there was that they had a future baseball star attending Furinkan (which would increase the school's reputation), or that Akane made such a lovely couple with Shard-san (which caused Akane to fall off her seat in the bleachers and glare at her friend Yuka), or that Kuno had finally been hoist by his own petard.   
  
Actually, just beating the snot out of Kuno had assured some popularity to the new student.   
  
Right after class, a group of the Horde had come to Akane and told the puzzled young Tendo that now that she was spoken for and had a decent boyfriend they'd be leaving her alone. Akane had begun protesting that she was *not* going out with the boy. She was *not* his girlfriend. Nabiki had taken a moment to whisper into Akane's ear that if she convinced this group she'd have to go back to the morning melee.   
  
Akane was still standing out in the field wrestling with this moral dilemma as far as Nabiki knew.   
  
Nabiki let herself into her classroom, still deep in thought. She was wrestling with several decisions, quite aware that her own future could hinge on making The Right Choice.   
  
------   
  
Ripples went out from a single change. Some big, some small.   
  
Somewhere in China, a ripple in the fabric of reality went through a place known as Jusenkyo, which had more than its own share of chaos to begin with.   
  
"Come on boy! I won't go easy on you!"   
  
"Like you ever do!"   
  
"Oh sirs, you have not let me finish my Terrible Tragic Story!"   
  
"Oy Toh Shoh!"   
  
*Legsweep* *SPLASH!*   
  
"Hey, Pop, are we done yet?"   
  
*Burble!* *SPLOOSH!* "BrreeeAAWWWWW!"   
  
"What the hell is THAT?!"   
  
"BreeeeAW!" *THUNK!*   
  
"Aaaaaaa!" *Sploosh!*   
  
-------   
  
Greylle looked over his apartment, then reached out with one hand to put a palm flat against one wall. Stretching his arms out, he then touched the opposite wall with his other hand.   
  
Conclusion: dinky. A little over five feet wide. If he laid on the floor and put his feet against the one wall, then stretched out, he wouldn't be able to extend his arms fully above his head. Maybe seven feet there.   
  
Bathroom was common to a room next door, someone else's room. Whoever it was wasn't home apparently.   
  
The closet was one of the walls, which slid open revealing two shelves.   
  
Unfurnished. Which meant that he had to get a futon and everything else he'd need on this mission, since he was stuck here for a lifetime. Which brought him to finances. Income was...   
  
nonexistent?!   
  
How was he supposed to eat or anything? Oh. Yeah. IF this worked.   
  
"Create Food & Water," he cast. Doing the rhymes and gestures was better, more controlled, and certainly classier. He just needed to see if he had clerical spells.   
  
A cloud formed, then dispersed, leaving a pile of rice and two pickles. Also some wet floor.   
  
"Make note. When casting spells, have containers ready." Greylle sighed and added paper towels to the shopping list.   
  
========   
  
as it states above, this was never intended as a fic, just an epilogue to ASD. However, i'd written enough for two chapters by the time i stopped... arrgghh.   
  
Setup: Akane has been harrassed by Kuno for a couple of months, but the stuf only hit the fan and the morning battles had been going for less than a week when she's "defeated". Greylle, as you know, intensely dislikes Akane Tendo for a number of reasons. Therefore he's setting himself up to fail the mission and then go on to find some other place where he can set up shop and not be bothered by her or any of the other Nerimians (Nerimites? Nerima-jin?) At least, that's his plan.   
  
Odd how his plans rarely work out, isn't it?   
  
==========


	2. Chapter 2: Strike One

Retake, Chapter 2   
  
DISCLAIMER: Ideas contributed by Ed Becerra, White Pheonix, Takahashi Rumiko, Game Freak, Jozo Mutsuki, Darts/Artmic, Masaki Kajishima, Akiko Furuya   
  
  
--------   
  
Following his failure in his Fourth Labor, Greylle had been stripped of several Aspects or past lives if you wanted a descriptive but not entirely accurate brief.   
  
Which left his new Core Identity here retaking a test.   
  
That Core was, by fitting into the Rules of Aramar and various "nudges" from various factors, an Aramarian silver dragon of the "young adult" category. Also due to events beyond his control, he was a cleric of (in roughly the order of their influence on his spells) Bast, Hephaestus, Toltiir, and Jared Saotome (god of crossovers). He had trained as a gadgeteer under Hephaestus, gone through Valkyrie boot camp, and an operative of the Rival Relief Office - a group of transdimensional misfits and odd ducks who basically tried to do jobs that they were underpowered for by cleverness, pluck, and scavenging anything useful they could on their travels.   
  
After a week of trying to fit into life in a Japanese High School, he'd come to one conclusion.   
  
Though he loved Japan as a home-away-from-home in many respects, and admired their politeness and work ethic and ability to pull together: the Japanese were insane. Especially in Nerima.   
  
Rather more useful observations had occurred from trial spellcasting. AD&D magic was not quite as workable as it was in D&D style universes. In fact, every spell he'd worked in that fashion had turned out to have bizarre side effects. Experimentation had revealed that this was closer to Slayers, which made him a primarily White Mage. Close but not quite. There were also still side-effects, but not as bizarre or as powerful as when trying to cast typical clerical spells.   
  
He was also not able to get a job as it required the permission of his school, which required very special and extenuating circumstances. While Greylle thought this qualified, the administration apparently did not.   
  
It further appeared that the Giants couldn't sign him for a contract until *after* he'd either graduated or married (something his parents had apparently insisted on.) So, most likely, he'd be here in the Furinkan area for another two years and subsisting on what he could conjure up as neither these "parents" nor the "Giants" had taken into account food and extras. Buying a few bowls, a futon, soap, towels, and a change of wardrobe had exhausted the funds he'd brought with him. Unfortunately his Universal Credit Card was missing. Figured.   
  
With the bizarre side effects, he'd only been able to determine a few things. This *was* a crossover universe of some sort, or at least there were other elements besides being a straight Ranma universe. What those were, he had no idea, as every cat within Tokyo had seemed to be drawn straight to his apartment by the divination. An augury had produced less results, except that one of the trees visible from his window was covered in sakura blossoms. Since it was not a sakura tree, this was a bit odd. Even for Nerima.   
  
The mark of a Rival Relief Office operative, more than any other single factor, was that they tended to accumulate little gadgets and doohickeys. Where an agent of the Goddess Relief Office or the Earth Assistance Hotline had raw power and a connection to Yggdrasil, the RRO had the Barely Adequate Force and whatever personal resources they'd managed to accumulate. With spells uncertain, his now typical draconic talents available but likely to cause a Godzilla alert if he changed shape to access them, and *no* allies, this meant he was stuck with whatever oddiments had been left in his pack.   
  
A minor computer, without scan capabilities, about the size of a Game Boy. Something that looked like a rolled up electric blanket but was actually a parts fabricator. The six pseudo-pokeballs had gotten his hopes up until he'd found they were empty. Pity. A cute animal mascot would have done wonders for his popularity as well as providing him someone to talk to who had a chance of understanding this crap.   
  
A Triax cyborg repair kit. A holodisc containing schematics on 24 common Droid types from a Star Wars universe. A book on Elven Mating Rituals that covered four racial subtypes and three major planes that he had never seen before. Four "Otome Kairo" that clearly were within a few simple steps of being completed? Three magic bracers that he'd picked up in that odd AD&D sort of world where he'd picked up those Djinni bracers that had transformed Kasumi into a sort of Djinn and Shampoo into a Marid. No telling what these would do without more extensive study.   
  
A sonic screwdriver and his #3 toolkit (brief happy dance). Three changes of clothing, also a baseball uniform and a... speedo?! That *had* to have been from Urd. Something that looked like a 4-dimensional backscratcher that he couldn't remember picking up anywhere. A small brazier, mirror, incense holder, three vials of holy water, and a set of common ofuda.   
  
There wasn't much he could do for the first week. School and trying to make sense of the damn kanji, as well as trying to practice his baseball skills, ate up the time.   
  
But he thought he was beginning to get things to take shape.   
  
-------   
  
"Well, Akane? It's been a week. That's how long Kuno had with his horde to come after you."   
  
Akane winced. Nabiki had been waiting for her after school daily since the gaijin's arrival. Joy. "Well, what, Nabiki?"   
  
"Still think the big bad gaijin is gonna try to 'claim his prize'?"   
  
"No," admitted Akane. The jock had actually been very polite to her in his faltering Japanese. He'd also done some very strange things. Whenever his path crossed Akane's, she'd noticed that he was checking out the exits nervously. And if her temper began to show, he *really* got nervous and started edging for one of those exits.   
  
"So. He's tall, he's handsome, he's gonna be rich as a pro baseball player, he's polite, he got your morning horde of hentai to lay off. Heck, even *Kuno* is laying off him. Something about not wanting to hurt the Giants' future star outfielder." Nabiki knew better, that Kuno's attack on the player had brought enough high powered lawyers that even the Kuno fortune could have dwindled to the point where you could hide it in a teacup, but baiting her sister was *so* enjoyable.   
  
Akane's eyes narrowed. "I offered to spar. He turned me down!"   
  
"Yeah, I heard. He doesn't like to hurt people and he's feeling guilty about that mess on his first day." Nabiki shrugged. She was thinking of making a play for the boy herself. Handsome, exotic, muscular, and potentially rich was awfully attractive. Still, family was important and she wanted to make sure Akane was ready to go back to having Kuno and Company after her. "Still, if you wanted to try to get him to that, he *did* defeat you in combat. Per Kuno's rules, he has to date you if you insist."   
  
"Why would I do that?!" Akane actually snarled for a moment at her sister.   
  
"Because, dear sister, you can then dictate the terms of your date. Including going out and sparring if you so chose." Nabiki watched the idea penetrate. "He's American and barely speaks the language, so he has no way of telling what a typical *Japanese* date is."   
  
Akane stopped. "You think I'd trick some boy to *date* him?"   
  
"No, to spar with a boy who is obviously intimidated by you," responded Nabiki. She'd been observing Shard-san herself. Speculation that he was gay was thrown out by the way his eyes had bugged out during the little incident when Megumi had "accidently" "popped her top" in gym. Operating theory among the more gossip-prone members of the school, based on this and similar incidents and perusal of his student files, was that he was shy. As impossible as that was to believe of an American. "Despite being in love with you." Actually there was no evidence in the slightest of this. Fear, yes. And many wondered what Akane had said or done that had intimidated the gaijin. Nabiki knew from quizzing Akane that Akane didn't know.   
  
Akane was about to rebuke that theory when her eyes widened. The way he edged away from her. The way he flinched whenever she raised her voice. The way he always made a point of being over polite when speaking to her. He *was* intimidated by her. But why?   
  
The youngest Tendo clenched a fist. Obviously it had to be *Kuno*. He'd either said or done something, and now she had a reputation stretching clear to the United States! And now he...   
  
Nabiki was immediately aware when Akane stopped walking and just stared off into space, and wondered what was going on. Akane knew she was just teasing, Nabiki did it all the time.   
  
Akane's thoughts swirled. Love? Someone felt for her what she felt for Doctor Tofu? Not like the boys around her who just wanted to beat her? Things were clicking into place. Of course, Akane had a few strange concepts about love. Her main example for how guys acted around women they loved was how Doctor Tofu behaved around Kasumi, so this was quite understandable.   
  
"Well, at least it's Saturday," said Nabiki as her sister began slowly walking again. "So we've got half a day after school, and all day tomorrow. Though the forecast is for rain most of tomorrow. Figures it'd be a day off, eh, Akane?"   
  
"Yeah," said Akane, not really paying attention.   
  
-------   
  
"HEY! STOP!"   
  
Greylle grimaced and stopped. ~Where the hell is Ranma? Isn't he supposed to be here and he can take Akane and I can get the blazes *out* of Nerima and away from all these violent morons?~   
  
Akane took a few moments to examine the boy, using interpretations supplied by Nabiki. Then smiled at the idea. So the big bad Amerikajin was in *love* and she made him nervous? Well, maybe it would at least take her mind of off her current failures with Doctor Tofu. Actually, this was rather like Doctor Tofu around Kasumi. Flattering, even if she didn't really have any interest in the fellow. Still, for getting rid of that morning problem, she felt she owed him something. A little. Tiny miniscule amount.   
  
Grey decided this was nerve wracking to say the least. Akane was *staring* at him. Was this it? She would go into her bloodthirsty berserker attack mode and do her best "squish the male" routine? If she *did*, he'd consider it a lost effort and abandon ship. Or at least this ward. Zoom. Though he'd feel a lot better if Ranma had shown up. In a way he was actually hoping it *was* the case. He didn't like to fail, but he also didn't like much about this current scenario.   
  
Akane put together what she knew of the gaijin, in this new light. Compared to any number of the members of the Hentai Horde, this guy was nearly a knight in shining armor. And if she *did* go out with him, it would keep the Horde from reforming. Taking a deep breath, Akane prepared to do something she'd never done before.   
  
He *knew* it. She had taken a deep breath and started striding forward, looking *very* determined. Now she'd pay him back a thousandfold for his knocking her out last week. Either that or some imagined slight. This *was* Akane, after all.   
  
Akane checked out the nervous looking boy. "So, Shard-san, have you had dinner yet?"   
  
-----   
  
Soun rustled his newspaper, apparently absorbed in the details of the sports page.   
  
Nabiki, however, had eschewed subtle to wait by the door. She hadn't lied to Akane, exactly. She just *had* to see Akane come in. For one thing, she needed a progress report, and how badly the gaijin had been beaten. Then she could help nurse the poor fellow back to health, thereby setting her up for his gratitude. Nabiki felt she could parlay that into either a relationship or possibly set herself up as his manager in time.   
  
Kasumi, likewise, had decided to wait by the door. Her poor excessively violent but nice little sister was finally outgrowing the "beat the world into submission" stage and had gone out on a date! Now if she could just get Nabiki out of her "mine, mine, mine" stage.   
  
Akane opened the door, saw her two sisters, and very nearly turned around and exited her own home.   
  
"Come on, Akane, details!" Nabiki wanted to know which hospital the poor gaijin was in, and how long he'd be in Intensive Care. Akane + date + any guy = squish.   
  
"Greylle was a perfect gentleman," grumbled Akane. "Didn't insult me. Listened to me. Didn't stare at my chest or talk down to me. Excepting for his poor Japanese it went perfectly."   
  
"And this is wrong in what way?" Nabiki smirked.   
  
"Oh dear," fretted Kasumi. It had sounded to *her* as if Akane had wanted her date to do something quite improper. In a way this was good, as it at least proved Akane wasn't a lesbian. Still, she was only sixteen.   
  
Akane frowned. All it would have taken was one improper action, and she would have felt perfectly justified in challenging him to a fight and pounding the crap out of him. Then he'd leave her alone, giving up his schoolboy crush, and she could get on with trying to get Doctor Tofu to notice her. He hadn't even taken liberties with his eyes. "He didn't even *try* to be a pervert. Rrrrrrrr."   
  
Soun twitched from behind his paper, putting things together in the manner of a father hearing this sort of thing from his youngest daughter.   
  
Nabiki put things together. Akane had a stubborn streak, therefore she wouldn't quit just because she couldn't bring sparring up on the first date's menu. "So when's the next date?"   
  
"We're going ice skating tomorrow evening. He says he's never done that, so when he starts slipping and grabs onto me," Akane clenched her fist. A perfect plan. Nothing could go wrong.   
  
Kasumi twitched slightly. "...oh my..." It sounded as if Akane had switched from pounding boys for being perverts to being somewhat of a pervert herself. It was nice that her sexuality had finally made itself known, but still this was most improper. "You're not going to go all the way are you?"   
  
Akane winked at her older sister. "Don't worry, Kasumi. I know what I'm doing." Of course she wouldn't pound the boy *that* hard. Just enough that he'd give up.   
  
"Oh dear," Kasumi wondered if she should get the formal teaset out. Or maybe get a packet of "Cupid Latex" for her youngest sister. Maybe it was just a phase she was going through?   
  
--------   
  
Greylle went back to the small (he'd seen bigger utility closets) apartment he had. He was puzzled.   
  
Akane hadn't once hit him. She hadn't insulted him. She'd gotten angry a couple of times, and he was completely clueless as to the *why* as to the whole thing.   
  
This was odd.   
  
He'd seen a few (very few) timelines where Akane Tendo was neither a tomboy nor prone to flashes of overwhelming violence. He'd seen a few more timelines where she was a misoandric (male-hating) psychopath. Those, however, were the two far ends. And frankly, he'd had more than enough of Ranma timelines within the first year of his exploring such things. Watching the same thing, or subtle variants, over and over again had been both boring and somewhat nauseating.   
  
Toltiir didn't much care for Akane, her sense of humor wasn't sufficient for his purposes. Greylle, on the other hand, didn't like Akane Tendo in the slightest. This was hardly the biggest difference between the two, but it was one of many.   
  
So, he was left contemplating the Laws Of Mainline Ranma Universes and considering how to use them to get out of his current situation. They weren't official laws, written in stone, but they were observed anyway and might as well have been such. He hadn't memorized the Big Book Of Ranma Universe Rules, but he remembered some of them. #16 "The Favored Fiancee can break off the engagement, destroy tender moments (Sakura mocchi, Akane gets a bad cut, post hypnotic dim sum, etc) and act like a psychotic, but she will always be right and not have to suffer the consequences of her own actions because by being the Favored Fiancee she is by nature Innocent."   
  
Nope, he didn't like *that* rule at all.   
  
Of course, he wasn't supposed to *be* Ranma here so he didn't have to put up with that nonsense.   
  
Hmmm. Which brought up another problem.   
  
He was, by core nature, an Aramarian dragon. Everything in Aramar, or at least nearly so, was covered by volumes and volumes of Rules. With everything that had been happening, Greylle hadn't been able to read any of these volumes of Rules, so he wasn't as familiar with all the details except a few that he'd had slapped in his face recently.   
  
As a male teenage dragon, basically he was lacking in the lust department. Male dragons were triggered out of their usually mellow state by the scent of a female who was ready to do *it*. Since there were no female dragons nearby, Greylle decided he was safe from *that*. (Was that ominous thunder? Surely not.)   
  
Of more consequence was the need to return to his natural form occasionally. To feed and drink and sleep and recharge his natural magic more thoroughly and efficiently. Since transforming into a 52 foot long dragon in the middle of Nerima Japan was likely to bring out the Anti-Godzilla Forces, that meant taking a "training trip" into the mountains. Maybe on Sunday.   
  
Hmmm. More thunder. He needed to get indoors.   
  
----------   
  
"Shampoo, you may have won the Tournament, but I will get even with you."   
  
"Bring it on, Lufa. I am quite ready to... WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!"   
  
"Such childish tactics, Shampoo. Now face the terror of... AAAHHHHHH!!!!"   
  
"BREEEEAAWWWWW!"   
  
*WHAM!* "Don't just stand there! Run! Run for your lives!"   
  
Shampoo slipped into unconsciousness from the blow to her head, her last sight being of the redhaired girl who had struck her while trying to rescue her from that THING.   
  
"BREEEAWWWWWW!"   
  
----------   
  
"What's the matter, Soun?"   
  
Soun Tendo seated himself in his usual place and looked at the bartender. "Sake, Shiro. Bring the bottle."   
  
Shiro did and waited for Soun Tendo to get to the point. He'd seen Soun bawling his eyes out, usually over something silly, or some other extreme of emotion regularly. Soun looking merely mildly upset meant something was up.   
  
"My youngest daughter is trying to get some gaijin in the sack."   
  
Shiro almost fell over. "The lesbian?!" Making a warding gesture at Soun's glare, he shrugged an apology. "Hey, you know the stories as well as I do. 'I hate boys' at *her* age usually means she either really really likes boys or is contemplating an 'alternate lifestyle'."   
  
Soun nodded. That had perhaps been the only good thing to come out of this little problem. He knew his little girl wasn't actually a man-hater after all. "She not only asked this boy out, but she was talking about how disappointed she was that he wouldn't be a pervert with her."   
  
Shiro nodded. "Okay. Well, at least this boy's got some self-control."   
  
"Damn gaijin, the Tendo family line is pure," began Soun.   
  
"So what's this gaijin's name?" Shiro didn't want to listen to Soun ranting for hours about gaijin or the purity of his racial line.   
  
"Akane said something like 'Grail' I think." Soun glared at his bottle of sake briefly. "When I catch him..."   
  
"Greylle? Greylle Shard?"   
  
Soun and Shiro looked over at this third figure.   
  
"That might be so," agreed Soun.   
  
"Haruhiko," introduced the third figure. He then went on to explain that the Giants had brought this boy over to try and lock him in as a baseball player.   
  
Soun stopped bawling about "damn gaijin" when he put together foreign talent with baseball. That was a little different, as pro baseball players such as "Randy Bass" were tolerable. Though obviously not as son-in-laws. Then the money was mentioned.   
  
Soun stopped crying altogether. Genma hadn't been heard from in years, so he wasn't a concern at present. Neither had (thankfully) the Chardin group.   
  
Maybe his daughter's happiness should take precedence over his old fashioned ideas of racial purity. Though Akane was the Tendo Heir, and one of his other daughters might well be better for the match. Hmmmm. How to arrange it though?   
  
Shiro and Haruhiko wondered if Soun had meant to speak all that out loud. Well, as long as he was going to ask.   
  
-------   
  
Greylle sneezed and felt a chill. Best to get indoors before it rained.   
  
-------   
  
Harry studied the fellow from a distance and sent a quick report back to Pungo.   
  
:Dragon. Young one. Obviously well practiced to being in human form. Primarily a White Mage, though very clumsy and not guarding well against spell side effects.:   
  
The decision now was to confront the Mage or not. Harry had sufficient power that the dragon would die if it was a threat. Dragons were tough, tricky, had very keen senses, could fly, breathe flame, and had those claws and jaws and natural armor. Adolescents were just beginning to come into their power, and being in human form reduced or removed most of those talents. So killing the dragon wasn't a big deal, IF it were necessary.   
  
Just that it was IN human form indicated that it was inclined to keeping a low profile. Though to be sure, Harry decided what was needed was some confrontation. A low level summoned monster ought to reveal what the dragon was up to.   
  
---------   
  
Ignoring the feeling of being watched, mainly because he couldn't do jack about it, Greylle went up and worked on his current project.   
  
Constructing a mini-fusion reactor had been difficult. Once *that* had been done, it was easy enough to build a few other things.   
  
Records had been checked. There *had* been a group known as the "Sailor Senshi" in the Azabu Juuban/10th District of Tokyo. They had vanished last year. More records translated for him had revealed the usual basic plot of the first season of Sailor Moon.   
  
There were some missing students since a period of about six months prior to when he had shown up. A few stories and blurred pictures of a *new* menace, which was the usual buxom female shape but animorphs, and that was it. No Doom Tree that he could detect.   
  
There being a need for the Senshi, but a big mystery with the Senshi, Greylle could only come up with one basic plan. He couldn't get away and investigate as is. Nor could he fill the role of the Senshi by himself. When he was rejected by Akane and Ranma was her fiance (if someone had to be stuck with her, better that it was someone who could survive her) he could investigate *then*. Clerical abilities might make up for Sailor Moon's absence, and his breath weapon could fill in for Mercury's cold attacks, sort of. Later. Right now he couldn't.   
  
So what was needed was a *substitute* Senshi.   
  
Which was what he was slowly building. Marionette technology combined with a little tech-wizardry. He couldn't build a Silver Millenium Crystal or transformation pen. Typical magic attacks - not possible without a lot more research. So he was building a Sailor Marionette that worked a little different from the human Senshi. The first unit was an ersatz Mercury.   
  
That in the last Labor he'd had an unrequited crush on Ami Mizuno did not enter into this decision at all. Greylle told himself this repeatedly and was beginning to convince himself.   
  
Ice beams, concealing fogs, and magical disguise fields were *not* possible. With what he could design and build here without lots of R&D at least. On the other hand he *could* add a suit of fibers that would do a nice job of cloaking the android, and a suite of battle sensors to give extremely attentuated senses, and an internally based force field mechanism to add a measure of protection.   
  
Though there'd be another problem, he didn't have room for a nanotank to do the skin and soft tissues up properly. How he'd manage *that* was another problem for another week.   
  
At least. Camping trip, homework, school, and now a part-time job (an Import/Export company that could use a fluent English speaker) that he had to keep secret from the school. Time? What time?   
  
------   
  
It had started out innocently enough.   
  
Greylle had told Akane about his camping trip. Needed to stretch after his teeny tiny apartment, get away from the city for a brief time, fresh air and all that, and practice the more powerful moves of his martial arts away from where people and property could get hurt. He had told her simply because he didn't want her making any plans like another date. (He was still puzzled as to *why* she wanted to date him. Didn't she hate boys? And where the blazes was Ranma?! Though if Ryouga showed up, he thought the two would be a better match.)   
  
Akane, trying to make sense of Greylle's patchwork Japanese, particularly what a "shoebox apartment" was, told Yuka and Sayuri. Then mentioned it to Nabiki.   
  
Yuka told Hitomi about the gaijin asking Akane to watch his apartment while he was away.   
  
Sayuri told Yukie about how the baseball player had offered to take Akane up on a camping trip to teach her special manuevers (wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more).   
  
Hitomi told Asako about how Akane's boyfriend was planning on spending the weekend with her in his apartment.   
  
Nabiki confronted Greylle about it, asked a few questions, then started selling the truth to those who knew what was going on with the usual gossip.   
  
Asako told Hiroshi about how Greylle was going to tie up Akane's weekend.   
  
Hiroshi told Daisuke about how the gaijin baseball player was going to tie Akane up over the weekend in his apartment and then do... and then some... and THEN. Daisuke openly doubted that Akane would go along with that sort of thing, but he hoped that someone could get pictures.   
  
Yukie told Sakura about how Akane was taking her boyfriend up on a martial arts training trip into the mountains.   
  
Sakura asked Akane if she had enough bug spray. When Akane asked why, Sakura filled Akane in on the details. At which point Akane shouted to the class that didn't they have better things to do with their time and that none of this was true anyway. Since class had been in session at the time, this resulted in Akane standing in the hall with a bucket of water. While there, Akane decided that maybe that some of this was accurate and Greylle had actually been asking her if she wanted to practice martial arts on a training trip.   
  
Akane leaned back against the wall and sighed. At last, a boy who took her seriously as a martial artist and wasn't a pervert. Too bad her heart belonged to Doctor Tofu.   
  
Meanwhile, Nabiki had sold the planned route and camping area to half her class. Kuno was standing in the hall after standing up in class to declaim the incipient deflowering of the "pure and tidy" Akane.   
  
Which, of course, started yet another wave of gossip and innuendo.   
  
Also meanwhile, Mitsuki was telling her friends about Akane's plans to elope with Greylle-san over the weekend.   
  
Greylle wondered why everyone was whispering and shooting looks his way. Must be some Japanese thing. And why had Akane been sent out into the hallway? She'd gotten upset about something and yelled, but that has been kind of excessive. Now if she'd pulled out a mallet, that'd be different.   
  
Kuno raced down stairs to confront Akane in the hallway. "Akane! How can you have given the flower of your womanhood to anyone but myself!"   
  
This was followed by Kuno flying outside the window, fortunately breaking his fall by landing on a visiting policeman. Whose partner was quite unhappy about this suicidal attack on an officer of the law when all they had been here for was to investigate reports of crazed martial artists destroying Mrs Yamani's shrubbery. Tatewaki Kuno was disarmed and led away.   
  
Those members of the school watching cheered for this phenomenal turn of events, and many suggested to Akane that she ought to elope more often.   
  
Akane repeatedly denied anything about an elopement, they were just friends, and further stated something about how her elder sister had more in common with the gaijin. This was just a momentary temptation on her part, to try to get either Nabiki or Kasumi together with Greylle, especially Kasumi as that would then leave Doctor Tofu open. She immediately discarded the idea, as she couldn't really picture Kasumi ending up with someone so young. Nabiki didn't have any feelings that didn't involve money.   
  
Nobody realized what was going through Akane's head, or that they were all talking too quickly for Greylle to understand any of this. Conclusions were quickly reached.   
  
That nobody had any reason to believe that Greylle had even met either of Akane's sisters was beside the point. It was a juicy story, after all.   
  
After class, Akemi congratulated Nabiki on her upcoming marriage to the gaijin. Nabiki smiled, nodded, turned back to her factors, and wondered what the heck was going on. She was supposed to be the one with the answers but the questions kept changing and some of the rumors were getting quite strange.   
  
Kasumi got a call from Hiroko's mother, congratulating her on finally getting out of the house though didn't she think that a gaijin was slightly scandalous at least? Kasumi expressed her surprise at her impending marriage to someone she hadn't met yet and wondered exactly what her father had done this time.   
  
Akane denied to everyone and anyone that she was eloping with the gaijin, it was just a training journey that she'd been invited on, and that Greylle would be a much better match for Nabiki.   
  
Greylle was complimented by a group of boys on his having relationships with all three of the Tendo girls at the same time, as well as questions about what kind of foods he ate. Greylle wondered what the heck they were talking about and didn't have to lie when he said he was getting a headache.   
  
Kuno declaimed the evil sorcerer that had stolen the heart of Akane Tendo and swore he would kill Greylle for the injustice of it all. As he was currently in a room with several police officers, a psychiatrist, and a representitive from the American Embassy, this qualified as perhaps the single most stupid manuever in a life filled with such.   
  
That night, Nabiki sold Akane the information of the fate of Tatewaki Kuno (wraparound sleeves and medication figuring heavily into the equation) and there was much rejoicing.   
  
Greylle showed up at the Tendo household, and it turned out Akane had forgotten completely about ice skating that night. It *did* give Soun and Kasumi the chance to meet the young boy. That he looked like a young Terry Bogard was well noted, by Kasumi at least, who was still operating under the unfortunate assumption per the earlier phone call that her father had engaged her to marry her youngest sister's boyfriend. While he was younger, he didn't look boring at all.   
  
Nabiki studied the young man speculatively as she tried to unravel the mystery of how he felt about Akane. Pecuinary interests collided with the fact that this boy seemed good for her sister, though Akane frequently protested her lack of interest in same.   
  
Akane took Greylle out, forgetting that she wanted to spar with him in her joy over the prospect of a Kuno-less life.   
  
Nabiki and Kasumi, for their own private reasons, and Nabiki's public rationale that they needed more information on this boy who was dating Akane, decided to investigate Greylle's apartment while Akane kept him busy. Something that Nabiki had been planning to do ever since she'd discovered the address in his student file and after today had even more reason to.   
  
There is no recipe for chaos, she brings her own ingredients.   
  
==========   
  
okay, that's it for now. i _may_ eventually write more but i'm trying to get back to some of my more pressing/older works that need to be finished/continued.   
  
-gregg 


	3. Chapter 3: Double Curve

Retake, Chapter 3:   
  
uhm, i didn't intend to write this much of chapter 3. Since i did i thought i'd send it out and see if anyone liked it.   
  
There were certain things that seemed to be true no matter what timeline Greylle found himself in. Call them multiversal constants for lack of a better term.   
  
One: flying was *good*! Doing it in an B-Wing or hovercraft was good. Doing it as a dragon was even better. Okay, you couldn't go supralight or travel beyond a certain ceiling. As Kestral it would be even better, but he'd lost that Aspect. Still, the feel of air sluicing past his body, the pressure against wing surfaces as he used them for additional lift and control, the feeling of freedom and control. Beautiful.   
  
Two: it was good to be the dragon. Someone had once said that "Dragons make good enemies, and better allies." This was so. To *be* the dragon was...   
  
Arcing up into a stall, which was also a midair piroutte. Diving down to level off close enough to the treetops that branches snapped from the air passage. Twisting and looping through everything he'd ever seen at an airshow, and added manuevers that required a very flexible body to perform.   
  
This? This was joy. It was contentment. It was being reborn from moment to moment in glory.   
  
Greylle couldn't help but bugle in the pure emotion he was experiencing.   
  
It was *damn* good to be the dragon.   
  
He'd gotten an early start on the day, packing his bags quickly and taking a train to the station and from there up to the area Nabiki had indicated would have no disturbances or witnesses, he could practice secret techniques to his heart's content here.   
  
Another few minutes pitching a tent that he'd gotten from a "Second Hand Sports" and throwing that thin futon of his in. It didn't take long to get a firepit ready, and it was close to a stream. Then he'd gone a little ways off and transformed.   
  
Two hours later and he was still reveling in taking what was now his true shape. It felt as if he'd been cramped and confined in a too small suit and had suddenly taken it off. Scratching itches he had borne for so long that they hadn't really registered anymore.   
  
Wings spread a little further and Greylle slowed in order to briefly hover. He needed to get busy. He had too much to do. He had responsibilities. He had...   
  
Aw heck, just a little more wouldn't hurt.   
  
Of course, that was when a few bullets started flying toward him.   
  
His momentary surprise that someone had a gun in Japan was broken off as one hit and *stung!*   
  
Okay, that was it. He didn't want to be here anyway. NOW he was pissed.   
  
------   
  
A woman grinned from where she sat in a tree branch. "Looks like its working."   
  
"What does?"   
  
"Oh, there you are, Urd. A Luck Balancing spell. It should swing him into good luck before it gets him into neutral luck."   
  
Urd pointed. "Getting shot at is good luck?"   
  
"If it were bad luck he'd have been in human form. As for the rest, watch and see."   
  
--------   
  
The two captives were a little nervous, being held hostage by armed and desperate types who were talking about taking liberties with the female prisoner having that sort of effect.   
  
Hopes raised a little upon hearing gunshots. Perhaps the police had arrived?   
  
Hopes dropped a little on hearing screams of outright terror. And was that roaring?!   
  
The screams got even nastier and more frightening. Their final captors ran out, guns drawn, and there was a blast of cold air and a set of screams that ended in the most unsettling manner.   
  
There was a few moments of silence, then a gaijin entered. Tall, blonde, and with the look of a fighter. That he was wearing a baseball uniform was noted as an odd detail that made absolutely no sense.   
  
"That's what i thought," said the gaijin in English. "Hang on, i'll get you out of there."   
  
The gaijin broke the handcuffs with his bare hands, proving that he was quite a bit stronger than he looked, and that he didn't look particularly weak to begin with.   
  
"Uhm, do you work for me?" The male captive asked in oddly accented English.   
  
"Nope, just a transfer student of Furinkan, Greylle Shard. Nice to meet you two. Uhm, you look kinda familiar."   
  
The man shook his head. "I don't think we've met. You've my thanks."   
  
The gaijin blocked the door as the two moved towards it. "You might want to shield the young lady's view. It got kinda messy. As soon as i realized they were Yakuza, and shooting at me, i kinda lost my temper. It's a problem i've got. People making death threats or trying to kill me really rub me the wrong way."   
  
The woman captive pushed past. "We are Japanese, we are able to handle mess quite easily. It is..."   
  
The male of the two moved to catch the woman before she fainted.   
  
Greylle went to one of the odd ice pillars and shattered it with a punch. Then found a cellphone on the frozen body that had been inside and handed it to the male captive. "Look, you two seem like good people. These weren't. And like i said, i gotta little temper problem when there's death threats involved. You two use the phone, call those people who work for you to come pick you up."   
  
The male captive looked about. Cars had been ripped open, with jagged pieces of metal from where the roofs had been peeled away. Bodies were lying everywhere, with dark glasses and black suits likewise shredded. There were columns and patches of ice visible too, one of which had a still twitching arm sticking out of it.   
  
Somewhat alarming were the *claw* marks quite visible, and nearly everywhere.   
  
"Sorry about the mess, take care."   
  
-----------   
  
Greylle left, got away from the site, and transformed back and began flying again. Little handguns hadn't done much other than sting against his hide. The shotgun likewise hadn't had enough penetration. If they'd had a high powered rifle...   
  
Huh? A scream? Oh crap, what were THEY doing here. For that matter what the heck was a grizzly bear doing in Japan?!   
  
-------   
  
Nabiki looked up, and up, and up, and saw WHAT had just reduced the bear to little scraps of bloody fur. Silvery metal scales, long neck, big mouth fully of what looked like really sharp teeth. "Gah!" She would have run but her legs were locked. Her hair was also pointing straight up and she'd turned quite pale.   
  
Nabiki was the cold in-control Ice Queen of Furinkan. At this moment her rational mind shut down and she was effectively a small brown mammal faced by the biggest damn predator she'd ever seen.   
  
Kasumi looked at the dragon, then down at the remains of the bear that had attacked them, then appeared to think for a moment.   
  
Greylle was entirely unsure of what to make of this situation. He'd spotted them but hadn't been inclined to make an appearance, but seeing the two about to run into that bear had been enough.   
  
The eldest Tendo daughter bowed. "Hello Dragon-san. My name is Kasumi Tendo. I hope you are well today."   
  
Greylle blinked. She was kidding, right?   
  
Nabiki continued to stare with big eyes and...   
  
Greylle sniffed the air. Funny, he would have thought Nabiki had more self-control.   
  
"So, Dragon-san, have you seen my sister, who was supposed to be following her boyfriend out here?"   
  
*No Kasumi of Tendo. Only you two has this one seen.* So Akane was out here too? Just freakin' wonderful!   
  
"...telepathy..." Nabiki might have been normally inclined towards natural shielding but had run into the sort of trouble that occurred once someone told you to not think about purple cows. Once you'd committed to try not to thinking about them, that was all you could think about.   
  
To Greylle, an Aramarian dragon who understood almost any language due to a telepathic trick, it was like she was shouting every guilty secret in her possession. Mixed liberally with fear, discomfort, and (for whatever odd reason) greed. To his sensibilities it was sickening. Well, at least mildly nauseating. Especially as she kept picturing herself being shredded by claws and chomped on by jaws. His tastes definitely did *not* run to maiden flesh.   
  
*Kasumi of Tendo. There is a human camp near a stream this way. Let your sister clean up there. And NO, Nabiki of Tendo. You're confusing me with the Yamato-no-Orochi. Don't be insulting.* With a furling of wings, Greylle launched himself, to better guide the two. Also to get some distance.   
  
It was a simple camping trip. Why did it have to turn into such a mess?   
  
Landing at his campsite was easy enough. He'd chosen it for just such a purpose. Ah, here came Nabiki and Kasumi. Well, he'd give them some privacy so Nabiki could clean up and he could transform back while well out of sight. Then he could get some answers.   
  
His tent moved and yet another young girl stepped out and saw a big carnivore. Then saw her own sisters coming closer.   
  
"Kasumi! Run! I'll cover your escape!" With that as a battlecry, Akane attacked.   
  
--------   
  
A blackhaired oriental woman listened carefully. Time to see if her preparations and Urd's little mission had taken.   
  
--------   
  
"Sir, a thousand apologies. If you but ask, I have a kaishaku ready and will perform seppuku immediately."   
  
The formerly captive male made a brushing gesture. "No. Everyone gets ill every so often, and you can still barely stand. My other guards will obviously have to be checked more thoroughly as somehow these *persons* managed to infiltrate their ranks."   
  
"Youma," pronounced another of the black-suit clad operatives. "All of them bear the mark of some dark entity that they served. I'll have to research which one."   
  
"What of our rescuer?" The female of the captives asked.   
  
"Greylle Shard. He was scouted out as 'gaijin tarento' by the Yoimuri Giants. Until he graduates though, he is a free agent who can't sign a contract for them. American, or so we thought, until a background check revealed something more. Heir to Martial Arts Baseball and the Seven Dragons School Of Martial Arts. Practitioner of Whatever Works Engineering, Martial Arts Housekeeping, and trained in a few dozen other very exotic and esoteric martial arts - though a master of none. Lives in a modest studio apartment, attends Furinkan Senior High School. Apparently the boyfriend of a..." The agent checked his notes. "Actually the report isn't too clear on that. Some say an 'Akane Tendo', others state he's the fiance of a 'Kasumi Tendo', others indicate that he's the lover of a 'Nabiki Tendo' and yet others indicate that he's repeatedly stated he's not anyone's boyfriend, lover, or fiance. Oh, and there were also two reports that he's involved with all three Tendo girls."   
  
"Other than he's actually a dragon, what did your report reveal?" The former captive made a gesture at the destruction to his right.   
  
The one who had spoken of demonic influence earlier took over. "Alien prince. Apparently there's some area in China known as the 'Lost Kingdoms' and has its roots in various cultural icons, or vice versa. A group known as Joketsuzoku represent the Tiger, the Phoenix is actually a place called Phoenix Mountain, and a group of beastmen known as the Musk were thought to represent the Dragon until recently. Actually there is a Valley Of The Dragons which was thought to be a myth. A valley in which no technology functions."   
  
"He's not from Jurai, is he?"   
  
"No, my Emperor. A similar group, though more isolationist. It is said that they are artificiers who build devices of great magical power." The old priest made a gesture off in the direction of the nearby dragon. "A prince of a star kingdom, commanding a hidden kingdom here on Earth. Apparently he has great healing abilities, but little control at this point, and is actually here to fight demonic entities."   
  
"Then his interests and the interests of my nation coincide," indicated the formerly captive Emperor. He gestured towards his wife to get her attention. "It has been a most tiring day. I think we should retire for now, while I decide how best to repay this debt."   
  
"Emperor-san! The dragon is being attacked by some girl in his own campsite!"   
  
--------   
  
This was embarassing, decided Greylle very very quickly.   
  
Akane, later in the series, would prove to be formidable enough to beat on the Yamato-No-Orochi. Though this was mainly due to the weakened and starved condition of the Orochi, that it was clumiser than five cows with their tails tied together, and the fact that even with five heads the Orochi was far stupider than any of the other cast members.   
  
"Take THIS! Haiii-ya!"   
  
Greylle, at fifty two feet in length, was considerably less massive than the Orochi. He was also, apparently, lacking a glass jaw (let alone five of them).   
  
"Ah-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-TA!"   
  
After the first flying kick from his (relatively) diminuitive attacker, Greylle had simply laid down, with one foreclaw cradling his chin. He turned an obviously bored look towards Kasumi and Nabiki.   
  
"Quick, run away! I've got him on the run!"   
  
Letting out a loud sigh, Greylle rolled his eyes. *You know. Today really sucks wind.*   
  
"Yah!" Akane threw one more punch, then started waving her hands around. "Owie."   
  
*My scales are the consistency of metal, you know. As if you couldn't guess.* Greylle sent his tail around and flipped the short girl towards the stream. *Cool down. Why does everyone confuse me with the damn Orochi?! i. don't. eat. people. Well, at least on purpose.* Hmmm. That was right, he was literally an omnivore, and metals were part of his diet. He'd have to find some silverware or something, wouldn't do to get low on minerals. Part of a balanced breakfast and all that.   
  
"Oh my," said Kasumi bowing politely. "I do hope Akane hasn't offended you. She's a very nice girl, despite being a violent maniac."(1)   
  
"You eat people by accident?!" Nabiki was *not* reassured by this assertation in the slightest.   
  
*i've got a little temper problem. One of the things about dragons, oh pardon me.* Greylle got up, fished Akane out of the stream, then put her face down on the ground so he could press down on her and squeeze the water out. The stream was only three feet deep, having her drown in it would be terribly mortifying. She'd never live it down. *Ahem, like i was saying, dragons are essentially elemental creatures. i'm kind of air and water. We tend to be like the weather - sometimes calm and peaceful, but also given to switching to extremes of emotion.*   
  
"Sort of like Akane," noted Nabiki as she shrugged and started stripping. If she was gonna be eaten, she was gonna be eaten. She had given up worrying about it.   
  
*Hey! That's not what i... i suppose there is some parallel. Damn. Errrr. Should you be doing that in front of strangers?*   
  
"You're a dragon, a boy dragon but a dragon nonetheless, I..." Nabiki stopped when she realized the dragon had turned partially away and was *blushing*?! Also that he'd accidently ground Akane into the dirt by putting his weight on her at an inopportune time.   
  
*Well, i'll leave you three... oh darn. Hang on. Looks like a healing spell will be needed for this girl. Who'd have thought she was delicate with *that* attitude?*   
  
Nabiki had taken her panties and shorts into the stream to wash them when that stopped her. "Healing spell?" Dragons might be profitable, and she'd thought of several ways to sell his location, though the thought of what the dragon might *accidently* do in return was most alarming. He obviously did not have trouble tossing Akane around. Healing spells? The call of vast sums of yen if she could gain the dragon's trust or at least cooperation was staggering.   
  
*Yeah, i think i cracked one of her ribs. i thought the slapstick effect would protect her from stuff like that. This does not bode well.*   
  
"Oh my." Kasumi thought that blood from Akane's mouth was most definitely not a good sign.   
  
Greylle thought about it. The words of the spell changed depending on need, so long as the patterns and symbols of magic were utilized in the correct fashion. Side effects could likely be minimized if he used the correct rhyme. Though he had the feeling that was only *part* of the answer.   
*Light of healing,   
wounds be sealing,   
bone and flesh - reknit, renew,   
send thy force entire through,   
seal injuries to this warrior maid,   
so her pains will quickly fade.   
Cure Critical Wounds.*   
  
Nabiki noted the dragon still wouldn't look in her direction, noted that the words had been in *English* and that Akane glowed briefly with white light.   
  
Akane lifted her head up. "Yeah. Let that be a lesson to you. There's more of that where that came from. That is. Yeah."   
  
"Akane. Drop it," advised Nabiki. Hmmm. An easily embarrassed dragon that spoke English. There was something familiar about it too.   
  
Greylle decided to leave before Akane tried to attack him again. This was all terribly embarassing. And it looked like he'd have to cut the whole thing short, it certainly wasn't working out too well.   
  
--------   
  
Akane watched the dragon leave. She'd driven it off! Hah. She was still the best!   
  
"Akane, how could you be so mean to that poor dragon?"   
  
"Huh?" Akane stopped reveling in her triumph. "Hey, how'd I get out of the stream? And why are you two here anyway? And why is Nabiki washing her shorts out? And... Why do I get the feeling I'm missing something?"   
  
"Gee, Akane, I dunno. Maybe you should... Get A Clue!" Nabiki finished washing out her shorts and set them on a rock to dry. It had been a terribly stressful day so far, and it wasn't even 9am! Heck, she shouldn't even be awake yet on a Sunday!   
  
--------   
  
Greylle landed a good mile away from his campsite, then shifted back to human again. It felt oddly confining and weakening for a few minutes, but that faded eventually.   
  
He started walking forward when he realized someone else was nearby. His senses cut down to near-human levels by the shapeshift, it made it difficult to pinpoint the location.   
  
Growling, he walked all the way back to his campsite while waiting for an attack or something.   
  
Of course, nothing happened.   
  
"Tendo-kun, Tendo-sempai, and whoever you are," said Greylle. "Why when come here be private, is so crowded... AND Yuka and Sayuri?"   
  
Nabiki was shivering, apparently reluctant to step out of the stream with all these people here. "AND Hiroshi, AND Daisuke, AND this is my big sister Kasumi, AND there's the baseball team, and there's Coach Kanzaki, and I'm SURE you remember Vice Principal Shinrei, oh, and I SHOULDN'T forget Hanzo and Greta!"   
  
Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Greylle considered the situation. "Nabiki, you sell location i train in secret to others?"   
  
"Uhm, no?"   
  
Taking a cue from all the people nodding "yes" - Greylle calmly collected Nabiki's clothes and walked to the tent. "i'm go to back to my apartment."   
  
"...but I wanted to spar," said Akane plaintively. "You were going to teach me special techniques, right?"   
  
Hiroshi elbowed Daisuke. "Special techniques, eh?"   
  
Greylle was about to say no when he got this nasty impulse. "Sure. i head dojo this afternoon. Teach you special attack."   
  
"What about Nabiki?" Kasumi glanced over at her shivering sister.   
  
"She made the soup, now she can lie in it," said Greylle, not looking at Nabiki. That way she couldn't see the evil smirk. "Hiroshi and Daisuke can keep an eye on Nabiki and make sure she's okay. Bye."   
  
--------   
  
This would do it. He'd read the "Battle Dougi" story, and seen it acted out in various timelines. "Yeah, I know a special manuever from another school you could learn."   
  
"Well, let me see it!" Akane was eager for this. A special manuever? Perfect. She could then finally show off her strength enough that some weak American would go off and leave her alone. Though she was beginning to have second thoughts about this. How often did she meet nice, polite, caring, boys?   
  
"=It is a manuever of Ti Kwan Leep. First you must clear your spirit. Ommmmmm.=" Greylle thought this was from a comedy sketch so it was perfect for the situation. Akane had revealed in that Battle Dougi story that if Ranma had *ever* struck her, she would never have forgiven him, despite her exhortations to fight her for real. So all he had to do was use a silly martial arts trick, tag her, then he wouldn't have to worry about this and could go do *important* stuff.   
  
Akane blinked. "Excuse me? How long do we have to do this?"   
  
"=About an hour to cleanse the soul. Ommmmmm.=" It was odd, but Akane talking in Japanese and him talking in English seemed to work. Mostly.   
  
"HOUR?!"   
  
"=Maybe longer. Ommmmmm.="   
  
"WHAT THE HECK KIND OF LAME SPECIAL ATTACK IS THIS?!"   
  
Perfect. "I see I must demonstrate. Step closer."   
  
Akane grinned and strode forward. "Finally some action!" Perfect.   
  
"Special manuever of Ti Kwan Leep. Boot ta da head!" *WHAKUM!*   
  
Akane somersaulted in midair and came down on the ground. "oooowie. You... booted me in the head!"   
  
Greylle was a little surprised. It was just a joke special manuever based off a comedy sketch by a Quebecois group called the Frantics. It wasn't supposed to be *that* effective! Still, if things were going to go by such an obvious plotline. "You are lucky, Akane Tendo. Few students of Ti Kwan Leep learn so much of the school this quickly."   
  
"Hey! Hey! I wasn't ready!" Akane got up and charged forward. "Come on and try that again!"   
  
"Boot ta da head!" *SMACKUM!*   
  
Akane bounced off the compound wall and landed on her butt. "Ow! Oh. Okay, NOW I'm ready."   
  
"Boot ta da head!" *KER THWAK!*   
  
"Mind if I just lie down here for a minute?"   
  
Soun had been watching getting more and more horrified. Now he went to full demonhead mode. "YOU GAIIIJIIIN!"   
  
"Boot ta da head!" *KRUNCH!*   
  
Greylle smiled, seeing Soun Tendo go nighty-night instead of getting his usual way with that manuever. There was something to be said for this sensei stuff after all.   
  
"Uhm, that's a pretty good manuever," admitted Akane as she struggled to a seated position. "Sort of a twisting snap kick but it's got a lot of (ouch) power behind it. It has the advantage of speed, and you were able to access it without a lot of startup time or making the attack obvious before you launched it."   
  
"As my teacher would say, 'you approach wisdom' Akane." Greylle bowed, ready for the personal attacks and hatred. Or maybe she would try it on him and he could follow the original sketch a bit more.   
  
Akane nodded a couple of times, then her eyes rolled up in their sockets and she fainted.   
  
Greylle sighed and carried Akane in to where he could cast a Cure Light on her without anyone noticing. Sometimes being responsible sucked.   
  
It took him a few minutes to get Akane to her bed, then position her in at least a dignified manner. Once she woke up she'd never forgive him for actually hitting her (according to the original material and what he'd seen of other timelines), he could leave and investigate these odd divination spell results. So he could be generous in giving her a send off. He was inclined towards generosity anyway.   
  
Though seeing an expression of pain crossing the girl's face triggered the usual protective instincts and he went with something a bit stronger than Cure Light Wounds.   
  
"Powers of light,   
I call to thee,   
Injuries old and new to heal,   
That her health they do not steal,   
Rest well warrior, battle's done,   
Reward of rest you've surely won.   
Healing Sleep."   
  
Eyes closed as he cast the spell, Greylle didn't notice that his hands (one on her forehead, the other on her stomach) glowed briefly. Nor did he notice Akane scrutinizing him briefly, awake and awaiting something hentai (an excuse to come awake fully and pound the boy) when she felt the pleasant warmth and drowsiness flow into her body.   
  
If he had an ESP spell going or had been in dragonform, her thought that he was like a young Doctor Tofu and was using a shiatsu healing technique would have been dismissed as no consequence.   
  
Somewhere, ominous thunder swore because it realized it had missed its cue.   
  
---------   
  
Nabiki snuck away from the cracked-open door with as much speed as she could bring to bear with the need for absolute silence. Once safely in her room, she began shaking.   
  
She, like Greylle, expected Akane to react to being defeated with vitriol. This would effectively destroy any relationship between the two. As far as Akane was concerned, this would be viewed as a sexual assault, reality not withstanding.   
  
No, the Akane + Greylle budding romance had just died, Nabiki was sure of it. Akane being shown up always had the same result: resentment and anger.   
  
Which meant that a talented baseball player who happened to need a manager was available. That wasn't a problem.   
  
What concerned Nabiki was a softly chanted spell and glowing hands. She hadn't made out all the words, but it had been in English and she *did* speak that language. It was a major language for business after all. She'd caught enough to realize what he'd done. Either magic or a psychic technique.   
  
The ability to put someone in a healing trance? Yes, she could profit by it. That wasn't the problem.   
  
The problem was that she'd already witnessed a dragon earlier that day. The odd gadgets in Greylle's apartment. Now this. Her tidy little worldview was coming apart at the seams. There was only one explanation.   
  
Greylle was from the future. Or he was an alien. Okay, make that two explanations. Three if you combined them and he was an alien from the future.   
  
Though it was only shown briefly in the stories Greylle was familiar with, Nabiki in the vast majority of timelines was at least slightly into manga. In a few she actually wrote and drew manga, but in the majority she simply read them.   
  
Nabiki lay back on her bed and therefore fit the past two days into a semblence of order based on those sorts of stories. Greylle was an alien from a planet where they had baseball. And the "Seven Dragon" style obviously referred to his dragon-servants. So, why was here? Obvious. Like Time Traveller Atsuko in the manga of the same name, he was here to save the human race from some great menace or disaster that would strike in the future.   
  
The mercenary Tendo was also facing something else. She'd always equated money with power and control. In a world where she was now facing alien dragons and baseball playing psychic time travellers, a few extra yen were suddenly pitiable.   
  
In order to get her hands on *that* kind of power, she needed to be friends (at least) with this guy. He was nice and all, but Nabiki could well imagine all sorts of nasty things that could be done to her if she tried blackmail or her usual tactics. Anywhere from psychically wiping her memories to feeding her to that dragon. Nabiki wasn't sure which she'd be less happy with.   
  
So it was either significantly change her modus operandi, ignore what she'd learned, or get fed to a dragon. This last caused her to frown. Based on what she'd seen of the fellow, particularly how tenderly he'd carried Akane up the stairs, he wasn't *that* brutal. Erasure of memories seemed likely.   
  
Though the sight of Akane helpless and being touched like that was turning her on. It didn't take much effort to close her eyes and imagine those strong hands touching her like that. Of being held tenderly in those arms and laid out on her bed and...   
  
Nabiki slipped off in a light drowse before she'd realized it.   
  
If she could have known that this was the unplanned side effect of the 'Healing Sleep' spell, she might have been alarmed.   
  
------   
  
Greylle passed by Nabiki's room, hearing a series of soft moans, and decided not to check on her. Considering Nabiki it could mean anything.   
  
He *could* heal Soun. Nah.   
  
There were better things to do.   
  
------   
  
"Aaaaaa!" Ranma-chan screamed and ran to the East.   
  
"I get you," screamed Shampoo in quick pursuit.   
  
"BReaaaguh!"   
  
"Aaaaa!" Ranma-chan screamed and ran to the West.   
  
"Aaaaa!" Shampoo screamed and ran likewise to the West.   
  
The big bearlike creature with the huge mouth ambled after them. "Breaghhh! Snorlax!"   
  
------   
  
  
(1)=Thought i ought to footnote this as otherwise i'll get comments about it being OOC for Kasumi. Go check the manga. She does indeed sum up Akane's character that way. 


	4. Chapter 4: Foul Ball

Retake Chapter 4:  
  
Disclaimer: arrgghhh. i still hadn't attempted to write this. i just keep making a few notes and... oh yeah. Characters by other people. Well, mostly.  
  
---------  
  
She stepped into the basement, putting an elaborate earring into her pocket and looking around.  
  
"Who are you to come trespassing into this lab? No, don't answer. It doesn't matter for this will be your grave."  
  
The woman scowled and glanced at the guy in the labcoat. "Geramatou. Don't even bother with the cheesy dialogue. If you knew who you were dealing with, you *and* your Pharoah 90 would be running like pigs at a barbeque."  
  
The Professor stopped dead still. The claim was obviously ridiculous, yet knowing his identity and that of his Master was fairly impressive in itself.  
  
"This is the transmitter, I take it," the woman said, flipping her long hair back with a casual toss of her head. She immediately walked into the center of it. "Clumsy work."  
  
"It's state-of-the-art, beyond anything mere mortal minds can conceive!" The Professor began an evil chuckle.  
  
"Yeah. Right. Depends on the mortals in question, don't it?" The woman looked up, as if sighting through the layers of concrete and metal to something beyond it all. "There he is. It is. Inhuman demon-gods having an indeterminate gender after all."  
  
"What are you..."  
  
The woman held up both her hands and pointed up. Concrete vaporized. Metal vanished. The Eggs Of Daimon, with a year to go before they'd be ready, flared as smoke began pouring from them.  
  
The Professor watched as long as he could as the metal and ceramic of the transmitter boiled away and a pencil thin beam of brilliance stabbed up and away from the woman.  
  
"That's it," said the woman, dusting her hands off. "Poor boy wouldn't have had a chance against Pharoah 90. Of course, he'd have been immune to the beastie's attacks, but living in what would have been left would *not* have been any fun at all."  
  
"You... killed..." The Professor dropped to his knees. He could feel it. Pharoah 90 wasn't there anymore. Either dead or wounded so badly that all connections to the alien intelligence had been cut.  
  
"Oh, let me take care of that while I'm here," said the woman as she walked up to the Professor, and snatched an egg-like object from his head. Then dropped it and crushed it casually under her sandal.  
  
"Uhmm... What..."  
  
"Remember, Soichiro Tomoe, remember what happened when you were the carrier for the daimon Geramatou." The woman tapped her finger against the Professor's forehead.   
  
"I..."  
  
"Sorry, I can't give you time to consider everything. I've just saved you and your daughter's life, since summoning Pharoah 90 would have ended both your lives, and the only way you wouldn't have summoned the Pharoah was to kill both of you before the summoning. The Witches 5 would then have gone into political infighting and never become a threat. I've already removed 'Mistress 9' from Hotaru."  
  
"I..."  
  
The woman smiled. "The cost to you for this service is very simple. Are you familiar with the concept of arranged marriages?"  
  
"I... Hotaru?"  
  
The woman nodded. "Exactly. I've got an arrangement to make with Hotaru. Oh, and I'm going to have to train her as a shrine priestess. It's a good cover for her healing abilities anyway."  
  
"An arranged marriage? Hotaru?" Professor Tomoe shook his head, focussing on the woman in front of him. Tight faded jeans with one knee worn out, a loose t-shirt with some odd anime-looking group shot on it, with what appeared to be a WWII leather bomber jacket over it. Peach colored lipstick and nail polish, but what really stuck out was the three facial tattoos. Two small red circles, one on each cheek, and a large red circle on her forehead.  
  
The woman winked. "By the way, this lab will dissolve into subspace in thirty seconds. I'll be back to give you more details when you've had a chance to catch up."  
  
"But... who are you?"  
  
Another wink and smile, followed by a thumb's up. "A lot of people call me Amaterasu Omikami. *You* can call me Amaterasu. Hotaru, I think, can call me Ama-chan. She didn't screw up like you did. I'm sorry, sparing a life for a few years in return for eternal damnation? Who taught you to negotiate? Genma Saotome?"  
  
"Uhm... I..." Soichiro Tomoe wasn't at all sure what the proper response to this was.  
  
"Oh well, I got to go use the Seal. Wouldn't do to accidently incinerate some city because I got pissed at the way they're portraying me in some story, would it?" Waving a quick bye-bye, Amaterasu walked into a wall and vanished.  
  
"THAT was Amaterasu...?!" Professor Tomoe saw the walls beginning to flicker and raced for the exit. Somehow he couldn't picture THAT Amaterasu hiding herself in a cave because she was being laughed at.   
  
---------  
  
"Acchoooo!" Greylle sniffled. Damn, a chill up his spine and he kept sneezing. He hoped he wasn't having a return to the allergies he'd had in his human first life.  
  
Cramped apartment and one thing other that struck him as deuced unfair.  
  
It was Winter of 1992 in Tokyo and he didn't have a damn TV! All the series he was missing out on!   
  
Oh well, he had enough to keep him busy. But dang it.  
  
:System Power at 25% :Languages Set: Japanese, English :Identity Set: Sailor Marionette Mercury :Secondary Identity Set: Ami Mizuno :Internal Diagnostic - Basic motility only :Activating  
  
The marionette moved. "Anata dare?"  
  
"Greylle Shard. Set language to English, will you? I'm tired."  
  
:Set Master = Greylle Shard. Done.  
  
"Sit down. Right now you're at most basic levels. I can upgrade you bit by bit as materials and time becomes available." Greylle sighed. "Like i said. i'm tired. Also i don't have access to nearly the materials i'll need. Which is why your head and hands are the only thing covered by skin, and that skin isn't too convincing. i'll need a nanotank, something i can completely immerse you in that i can program nanites to build artificial tissues with."  
  
Mercury sat back down and regarded her Master carefully.  
  
"Oh, and i don't care for the whole 'Master' thing. So, just consider me a commanding officer for now. i'll sweat the details later."  
  
Mercury blinked, storing that to memory.  
  
"Uhm, anyway, there's some problems. i'll upgrade you with a Maiden Circuit once i can replace the units i have. The grenade launcher and other items, likewise. The kind of stuff i can currently make are too bulky to be internal and still remain useful. No lasers or particle beams."  
  
Mercury blinked again.  
  
"As soon as i can find storage room and solve some of the other problems, i'll build an Usagi model. Can't have the Senshi without having the Princess."  
  
Mercury blinked.  
  
Deciding this was fruitless and it was late, Greylle turned on a radio and handed it to the marionette. "Look, listen to this and use your spam filters. Maybe some of it will help fill in the gaps in your programming. i'm getting some sleep, tomorrow just stay in the apartment while i'm at school."  
  
--------  
  
Nabiki awoke and walked past Kasumi on the way to the bathroom. "Mrrrmmn Ssmmmi."  
  
"Good morning, Nabiki," responded Kasumi, used to translating morning mumble. "Oh, since we didn't get to look too long on Saturday, I was planning to wait until all of you were at school, then investigate Shard-san's apartment in a bit more detail."  
  
Nabiki stopped with her toothbrush in her mouth. "Mrfmmm? Mffff rmrmmff."  
  
Kasumi blinked. She'd gotten so used to Nabiki's morning mumble that she had no trouble deciphering it. The addition of the toothbrush seemed to add an entirely new layer of cipher. "Well, he was fairly nice and polite, but *you've* heard the stories of some of these gaijin."  
  
Nabiki turned slowly from the mirror to regard her sister through sleep-deprived eyes. "Mffmen?! thumn mfffn mrrrfn mefmnn?"  
  
Kasumi considered that. "Well, he seemed like such a *polite* dragon. Besides, according to Mrs Setomi, father apparently engaged me to marry him."  
  
Nabiki began choking on her toothbrush, finally dislodging it a few moments later. "Hah?!"  
  
Kasumi was already walking away, embarrassed by this situation. Shard-san was too young! Still, the odd gadgets she'd seen, and obvious disarray, indicated that he was the sort who needed a woman to take care of him. Such a mess Father was making.  
  
Nabiki stared after her older sister. Deciding that she must still be asleep, Nabiki went back to brushing her teeth after washing the brush out. *Kasumi* being sneaky while she herself was being honest and straightforward? No, that couldn't be the case.  
  
--------  
  
Kasumi let herself in, oddly easy as the lock on the apartment door didn't work too well.  
  
She hadn't gotten a chance to examine things too well the last time, when she and Nabiki had been trying for a quick reconnoiter before getting back and planning to make sure Akane didn't get *too* forward with her new boyfriend.  
  
There was that odd metal sculpture that had been folded up on a shelf, but which was now folded up in a corner. It reminded her of the mannequinns that artists used to get proportion and pose right. Except that this one was metal and plastic and lifesize. It bore a superficial resemblence to Akane, though with shorter hair and higher cheeks and an odd blue tint to the hair. Okay, there really wasn't much resemblence to Akane. It also, other than the hands and head, was mainly metal tubing and electronic components.  
  
Some sort of robot, obviously. No doubt the boy was going to be an engineer and this was some sort of science project.  
  
There was a pocket radio, tuned to an All News channel and playing. How odd. She knew the boy's Japanese wasn't that good.  
  
An odd electric blanket, but considering how chilly the apartment was, its presence wasn't that unlikely.  
  
What *was* odd was how uncomfortable she felt with the sculpture's eyes apparently following her. Which was silly, of course, it merely was a trick of the lighting.  
  
Then there were these odd baseballs. No doubt used in his strange style of martial arts.  
  
Kasumi smiled, remembering her own high school days when she'd been heavily into sports. Then she'd had to drop out and dedicate all her time to keeping the household together after her mother's death, but that was giri (duty).   
  
"The Tendo are a family descended from samurai," Kasumi informed the sculpture, casually tossing the sphere from one hand to the other. "If my father has arranged for me to marry a gaijin like Shard-san, then I suppose I must..." Had the sculpture just blinked? Oh, yes, if it was a robot simple things like that might be possible. No doubt it would be radio controlled. She was mainly talking to it to settle her own mind, so why not act it out? Sort of like talking to a stuffed animal.  
  
"Well, the Tendo-ryuu used to be a naginata style, but since Father trained with Happosai it has become a bare-handed style. Still, we keep the armor and ceremonial blades of the old samurai family. And our family honor, of course. Bushido. Which is broken into the seven virtues: Gi (duty to justice), Yuu (courage in battle), Jin (compassion), Rei (politeness to others), Meyou (truthfulness), Makoto (loyalty to one's lord), and Chuugo (duty to one's word). There is also Giri (family honor) to consider."  
  
Kasumi let out a deep breath. "Though I don't know. A gaijin. Even if he is tall, and seems to be polite. I just don't think I could marry him, though how to Oh, what's this?" She'd just noticed these odd balls had a button in front. Maybe there was something inside? Kasumi decided just a peek wouldn't hurt, and pressed the button and peered in as the ball opened on some hinge inside it.  
  
*SHOOM! WHOOSH!*  
  
Mercury watched the ball rock back and forth, the light blinking repeatedly. It took three minutes, fifteen point two eight seconds, for the ball to stop moving and blinking.  
  
As there was currently no one else in the apartment, Mercury picked the ball up and put it back where the girl had found it. No point in leaving a mess.  
  
-----  
  
"Naruhito?"  
  
The Emperor turned to his wife after that gentle voice spoke. That she was pale and quite nervous started an alarm going. "Masako?"  
  
"There's someone here to see you. I *really* think you should see her."  
  
For his wife, the Princess Masako, to put an emphasis like that on something was alarming in and of itself. Especially after their recent kidnapping. "Very well, if you think so."  
  
The woman who swept into the room was wearing a kimono of gold and red. She didn't look a thing like the old pictures, but he knew her on sight. "Oh my dear kami."  
  
"Hello, great grandson," she said, deliberately omitting a few "greats" in there. "I think we ought to have a little chat."  
  
--------  
  
"Achhoooo!" Greylle looked around. "Uhm, sorry."  
  
Akane spent some time looking over the gaijin sitting next to her, studying him and trying to figure him out.  
  
Okay, he was an inscrutable American. On the surface they were very simple. All the guys were hairy grunting sports fanatics who fixated on power tools, or they were sinister power-brokers, or they were those wimpy ineffectual sorts, or they were clueless but well intentioned youths with a tragic past. Discounting series like "Wingman" where Americans were actually aliens from a shadow dimension plotting to conquer Japan. Which was Greylle Shard?  
  
Yuka and Sayuri winked at each other as they noticed the scrutiny Akane was giving Greylle.  
  
*WHACK!*  
  
Akane rubbed her forehead from where a piece of chalk had impacted it. "Huh?!"  
  
"Miss Tendo, you can stare lovingly at your boyfriend AFTER class."  
  
"Huh?" Greylle said, looking up from where he had been trying to figure out a kanji.   
  
Akane was momentarily in shock, then erupted from her desk. "HE IS NOT MY BOYFRIEND!"  
  
Yuka and Sayuri started laughing.  
  
"HE'S NOT!! We've only gone out twice!"  
  
"Huh?" Greylle repeated.  
  
Several of the other girls picked up on Yuka and Sayuri's mirth.  
  
"HE'S *NOT* MY GIRLFRIEND! Waitaminute, I mean BOYFRIEND!"  
  
"So," said the teacher, "that means you're going to stop sleeping with him? You won't get him to tie you down to the bed anymore?"  
  
"WHAT?!" Akane was reaching entirely new registers with that comment. "YES! NO! I MEAN... ARGGHHHHH!!"  
  
The teacher tsked a few times. "Miss Tendo, either sit down and pay attention to the lesson, or report for bucket duty."  
  
"B-b-b-b-but I..."   
  
"I not understand. What everyone talk about? What mean 'sokubaku'?!" Greylle puzzled. Yes, Japanese were crazy.  
  
This comment caused Yuka and Sayuri to fall off their chairs but this was hardly noticeable from all the other laughs.  
  
Hikaru Gosunkugi sighed. It was obvious. Akane spent all her time denying she was in love with the foreigner. Therefore she was. Clearly Shard wasn't clear on how to respond, which gave Hikaru a certain voyeuristic quality as he could imagine himself in the foreigner's position quite easily.  
  
Greylle considered all the hilarity around him, how Akane was trying to shrink in on herself, and wondered if he would EVER understand the Japanese.  
  
------  
  
Ranma caught her breath. This was *beyond* ridiculous. "My life is a living hell."  
  
A shadow moved and a male voice responded. "Tell me about it. I bet I can top it."  
  
"Yeah right. My pop the idiot took me to a place with these cursed springs, now I turn into a girl when I'm splashed with cold water. Return back to guyhood with hot water, which doesn't seem to last too damn long. My Pops turned into some bear sorta critter that eats damn near everything it runs across. He throws up the people he swallows eventually, but lemmee tell ya: you do NOT wanna go through the experience. I rescue some gal from being a Happy Meal, knock her out while I'm going, next thing you know she's going off and trying to kill me AND kiss me and she's screaming something in Mandarin I can't follow. And we keep running into my Pops who is STILL trying to eat us. Top THAT." Ranma slumped to the alleyway and cursed her father, not for the first time by a long shot.  
  
"Try this. Me and my friend were advisors to a team of magical girls out to protect the universe. One day, all the magical girls went off and tried to stop this 10,000 year old evil queen who was out to destroy the world. Except that they're 'Missing and presumed dead' now, and we've got noplace to call our home, and no way of telling what's going on! "  
  
Ranma frowned. "Okay, well, 10,000 year old evil queens are about up there with transforming curses from ancient springs. So I'll grant you that to some extent. Still think my row's harder though. At least you don't turn into a girl."  
  
"Nah. It's just *I* can't turn back into a human. I'm stuck as a cat."  
  
Ranma nodded. Then she froze. Then she peered into the shadows nervously. Small. White. Definitely feline in shape. Oh. "C-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-CAT?! Aaaaaaaaaaaaa!"  
  
Artemis tsked. "And you're an ailurophobe? Okay. Maybe you win. Naaaah."  
  
-------  
  
Shampoo screamed at the heavens. She'd been doing that a lot lately.  
  
Outsider girl saved your life = determine if she's good enough to join the tribe. If she is, then you can petition the tribe to adopt her.  
  
Outsider girl defeats you in combat = give Kiss Of Death and death threat, then pursue till ends of Earth. Etcetera.  
  
Two very conflicting rules. Neither of which addressed the concept of someone who knocked you out while saving your life. Lufa had been spit out after a long run, but Lufa was a nasty bitter young woman. Shampoo knew she wouldn't have been so lucky. No, Shampoo owed her life to the redheaded girl. The problem was resolving the two laws.  
  
If she'd stayed still after being told that she'd been given the Kiss Of Death - no problem. The girl could've been then taken to the Elders and made a member of the Tribe because she wouldn't have been a coward.  
  
Shampoo walked past one of these odd high schools. Why couldn't her life be easier, like one of these schoolgirls?   
  
*Bang!*  
  
Take those boys over there playing baseball. When was the last time Shampoo had gotten time to just play like that? What was that boy yelling? It sounded like English, something about looking?  
  
*WHAM!*  
  
Having had a baseball bop off her forehead at high speed, and the world fading to black, Shampoo realized two major things.  
  
One, she was *still* having a very bad day. This particular one had started over a week ago.  
  
Two, if Great-Grandmama found out that some redhaired girl AND a boy playing baseball had defeated her, Shampoo would get her butt chewed out royally and some hellish martial arts practice to correct her "weakness."  
  
Waitaminute. There was something about that last thought.  
  
--------  
  
Greylle walked up to the unconscious girl and groaned. Then he knelt down and began checking her. Pulse felt weaker than he expected, her eyes were rolled up in her head, and there was some nasty bruising forming at the impact site.  
  
"Damn, she's *cute*!" Hiroshi said, not realizing what a good thing it was that *he* hadn't been the one to knock out this bouncy purple-haired girl.  
  
Lifting her up, Greylle started trudging towards the nurse's office.  
  
There had been odd failures of the so-called "Slapstick Effect" earlier, where the violence was only temporary stun damage, and the baseball *had* been going at a fairly good clip.  
  
Well, at least he'd be able to get out of this one. Once it was revealed that Ranma was really a boy, he'd have defeated her prior to this, and Shampoo would have to drop him and pursue Ranma.  
  
Or, wait a minute. This wasn't a fight or anything like that. He could petition the Elders... on second thought that might be a BAD idea.  
  
--------  
  
Nabiki had come home to an empty house, save for her Father. Kasumi had not been heard from since this morning.  
  
Worrisome.  
  
Nabiki was the only one to know where Kasumi had been going, but since Shard-san was likely to be busy dealing with Akane's desire to find out what odd connection there was between the foreign girl and her boyfriend. Despite his reassurances that he'd never met the girl, but was familiar with some tribe of Chinese Amazons and he was worried about some quaint laws he'd heard about.  
  
Amusing.  
  
Back to Kasumi. It was unlikely that Kasumi knew that this was some alien from the future sent back in time to save the past from an ancient evil. So she *might* have run afoul of some sort of strange alien alarm system.  
  
Alarming.  
  
Which led Nabiki to opening a door and carefully sliding into the room. One good thing about the typical Japanese apartment like this, there wasn't room to conceal anything.   
  
A quick search of the apartment had turned up some bracelets that... was that *gold*?!  
  
Nabiki slipped the ring on first, which had a chain that led to a bracelet of the same gold material, which slipped into place on her wrist. Just to admire it for a moment before taking it off. Except that the clasp appeared to be missing now, there was unbroken metal.  
  
Realizing that she'd better NOT be caught here like this, Nabiki swiftly crossed the room to escape. She'd return this later when she figured out how to remove it.  
  
She'd determined that Kasumi wasn't here. The only thing present was that metal statue tossing some softball at her. Huh?  
  
*SHOOM!*  
  
-----------  
  
Mercury picked up the ball and put it on a shelf next to the first. Second intruder captured without physical harm or endangerment to unit.   
  
Theft was wrong. Attempting to steal from her Master was therefore wrong. Therefore both intruders had been neutralized. One from her own efforts, the second via direct action. According to the radio, capture and detainment were the usual punishment for such offenses.  
  
Mercury sat back down, her hands on the little computer and accessing its database. Those little spheres seemed interesting. Were there any other functions besides capturing intruders?  
  
----------  
  
Akane led the purple-haired girl into the apartment. Small, dingy, and mainly bare.   
  
She'd gathered that Greylle did *not* want everyone knowing he could do those healing special manuevers, and that this girl had no home, so waiting at his apartment for him to get done with afternoon practice seemed a good way to get answers.  
  
The youngest Tendo wasn't too clear on the details but had a feeling that the girl with the large lump on her head offered answers to the puzzle that was NOT her boyfriend.  
  
Shampoo wasn't too clear on anything right at the moment. Her head hurt. A lot. This girl might be some pervert, but she had been talking to her new airen, and could be a rival but she was guessing not. Dark haired girl had been obviously unhappy about something.  
  
Besides, Shampoo had tried to leap up and give the Kiss Of Marriage, only to find her legs were quite unsteady. Resulting in her nose impacting the floor. She probably looked a mess anyway. Better to wait until she could make herself presentable, THEN give the Kiss Of Marriage.  
  
Akane saw the jewelry on the floor and came to the obvious conclusion. That baka. Here he was, trying to struggle and make ends meet and he'd picked up jewelry to give her. Her eyes were drawn to the red stone decorated one. The ring fit too. Baka baka baka. The bracelet fit too. Looked nice on her hand, he had good taste. Hey, what happened to the opening in the back?  
  
Shampoo frowned *severely*. There was another bracelet on the floor. If her airen had given one to this girl, then Shampoo should have one too. Shampoo was admiring it when she got the sinking feeling of magic. Sure enough the gap at the back was gone. Saying something about how her head really *hurt* now, Shampoo wanted to see what curse was going to hit.  
  
Having it turn out to be a baseball of some kind was something that SHE hadn't expected.  
  
--------  
  
Mercury idly noted that this appeared to be a high crime rate area.  
  
These spheres were called "pokeballs", a "technowizardry" device patterned after a similar device that had utilized alien technology on another plane.  
  
They were similar to a transporter device. Matter Energy Matter. These converted matter to hyperspatial patterns and then stored them in a micro containment field. If the power got below a certain point, the ball would automatically discharge the occupant and rematerialize them. The individual within was essentially asleep during their store time, with the common dream being of flower-covered fields and a vast playground they could romp in or even sleep within their dreamscape.  
  
Accessing that dreamscape was something designed into these pokeballs. Originally it had been for the specific purpose of being able to enhance the creature within.  
  
The idea had apparently been that on these "pokemon worlds" these spheres were used for containing monsters to battle other similar monsters in an elaborate tournament setup. The Rival Relief Office had developed these as they could be used to store other creatures.  
  
The applications sited were that one could take one's horse through a dungeon, get to the plains on the other side, then simply toss the horse-storage ball and be able to ride off. Likewise guard dogs or other valuable animals could be easily transported.  
  
Of course, as the Rival Relief Office member Sasami noted in the file: these troubleshooters and meddlers went from one universe to another and picked up all sorts of things in those pokeballs. Visiting a "Monster Rancher" universe, for example, one operative had picked up three varieties of something called a "Pixie" - "Daina" (dragongirl), "Janne" (pixie-knight), and "Snowy" (Yuki-onna). Then gone on to a "D&D" universe and stored a "Large Warhorse", "Stone Golem", and "Rust Monster".  
  
Mercury delved further into the datastreams. The pokeballs were developed initially by an archangel named Raphael as "improvements" over the originals, refined further by a number of others, and eventually deemed too mindbogglingly useful to remain RRO equipment. Except that new ones were made after the last batch had been confiscated.  
  
One of the "improvements" later disabled had been that the data inside these versions of the pokeballs could be accessed and altered. Or copied. They had been disabled due to the possibility of someone messing with them, and in order to get past the disable one would need to know the passwords and be able to enter them in a specific timeframe and without any second attempt.  
  
Mercury had been built with an Ishii Kairo and a fairly sophisticated neural network computer AI. By one of the very people who had engineered the disabling routine. She analyzed it, checked her memory banks, deciphered, decrypted, and repaired files. Then slipped in through the disable.  
  
Files were copied for later examination. Analyses were run. Mercury would need to decide if further action were required.  
  
However, in discovering these files on the pokeballs, Mercury had discovered another file even more intriguing.  
  
-----------  
  
FILE 252-381-704 From Grey, Rival Relief Office, Asgard To Hephaestus, the Forge, Olympus  
  
Since we both know your opinion of small talk, i'll get right to the point.  
  
Raph's pokeballs use matter energy storage energy matter conversion using tech-wizardry principles. This much you know and i know and practically everyone who bothers to ask can find out.  
  
What occurred to me is that we could use this as a miniature manufacturing facility if we lack access to bigger concerns. We normally use Hoi-hoi cappsules for gadgetry, but it needn't be. Minor modifications would provide for mecha-balls. The idea was that you could build a virtual device, load up something close, and then impose the pattern in memory.  
  
A quick computer simulation however, indicated a staggeringly high chance of defects. While less than point oh two percent would be completely dysfunctional, there would be at least a 10% major dysfunction rate. So manufacturing cars or something similar would be out, unless you used a "brain the size of a planet" to drive the thing.  
  
Any ideas?  
  
--------  
  
Mercury looked at the empty pokeballs as she switched files to the doodles of character sketches he'd made for her sisters.  
  
Then dismissed the concept for now. Priority was dealing with the intruders. These pokeballs were obviously too valuable to continue use as incarceration devices if other means could be devised.  
  
Or perhaps...  
  
-------  
  
Escaping baseball groupies and the like had never been a problem. Until now.  
  
He'd had to leave the school, then lead a few persistant trenchcoat wearers and the like through a long and involved chase, to end up in an area he wasn't familiar with. He was, in fact, as lost as Ryouga.  
  
Though seeing a black shape with a flash of yellow in an alley, he counted this as actually a positive thing.  
  
"Luna?!"  
  
The black cat startled from atop the garbage can. Who knew her?   
  
"Luna? It *is* you, isn't it?"  
  
"Uhm, meow?" Luna tried to remember the guy standing over at the entry to the alley. She didn't recognize him but obviously he knew her.  
  
"Knock it off, Luna. There's important things to discuss. Like what happened to the Senshi."  
  
Luna startled again. "You... know about them?"  
  
"Please Luna. Just because i'm not a Senshi doesn't mean i wasn't at Court, nor does it mean i'm an enemy unless you choose to make me one." Greylle considered leaning against a wall to act relaxed but the grime level in this alley was pretty bad. "Come on, we can discuss this in that open lot around the corner and i'll get you a can of tuna."  
  
-------  
  
Greylle looked over Luna while she attempted to get the last trace molecule of tuna from the can. Obviously she'd been out on the streets for some time, and hadn't done too well. She was practically skin and bones, had some scars from fights or accidents, her fur was matted and grimy. "Luna. If you need a place to stay, I'll see what I can arrange. First though, what happened to the Senshi?"  
  
"Uhm," Luna gave up trying to coax the memory of tuna from the can. "Well. How much do you know?"  
  
He pretty desperately wanted to just grab the little black cat and shake the answers out of her, but this was Luna. She had to much in common with Genma, put pressure on her and you'd never get a straight answer.  
  
Luna sobbed and whimpered. "They're gone," she finally got around to divulging.  
  
"Well, if I knew *where* they'd gone, maybe I can eventually go get them!" He was debating whether a shift to dragon would at least get the little cat to cough up details.  
  
"How much do you know?"  
  
Deep sigh. Greylle glared at the cat again, then shrugged. Basalt was gone, and he only remembered details of his life as if he had read of his exploits a few months past. Still, he thought he knew enough of THAT Silver Moon Kingdom - allowing for some differences. "i'm not *of* the Moon Kingdom, but i remember it and was an ally at the time. i remember Beryl and Metal'la launching an attack while the Queen gave a masquerade ball to prematurely celebrate victory. i heard that the Senshi had been reborn, Usagi Tsukino being the reborn Princess and Ami Mizuno being Sailor Mercury. Sailor Jupiter is Makoto Kino, Rei Hino is Sailor Mars, and Sailor Venus is Minako Aino. Prince Endymion is Tuxedo Mask who happens to be Mamoru Chiba. What i don't know is what happened to them."  
  
Luna's eyes were wide. "How do you know all that?"  
  
"Enough, Luna. i have answered your questions. Answer mine. What happened?"  
  
The black mooncat sighed deeply. "I suppose it doesn't matter.  
  
"We had just found Sailor Venus and I'd met up with Artemis again when Beryl started sending the Hunter/Killer youma. It was horrible. Only Neptune and Uranus were able to fend them off. So Pluto determined where Beryl's base was and led the attack."  
  
Greylle held up a hand. "The Outer Senshi were involved?"  
  
"Yes," said Luna puzzled as to the look of revelation on this stranger's face. "Uranus and Neptune joined after Jupiter, and Pluto showed up after the Hunters began showing up."  
  
Greylle nodded, having an idea now. Typical plotline, but a turn or a twist in someone's path and the Inners meet up with Haruka and Neptune early. Haruka and Neptune being *much* more serious threats, having heard of and actually employing tactics, the Dark Kingdom uprated the threat and started sending nastier youma than the typical energy-harvesters. Pluto gets involved, hoping to contain the damage to the timestream by getting them to attack the stronghold and finishing off the big villain early. Except that they fail to return from their mission.  
  
The Dark Kingdom had continually underestimated the Senshi from what he'd heard. None of his various incarnations or Aspects, including Basalt, had ever shown up during what would have been the first season of Sailor Moon. If the Inners had faced the like of the "Gloom & Doom Girls" earlier, it would have been a slaughter.  
  
"They must have accomplished their mission if Beryl isn't around anymore," noted Greylle aloud.  
  
Luna nodded wearily. "Now. How do you know about all this?"  
  
"i'm an ally, Luna. And not without some magic of my own. i take it the Tsukino family didn't want their cat after their daughter vanished?"  
  
"I just couldn't stick around," Luna made a helpless gesture that cats shouldn't be able to do, but mooncats were a lot more flexible than the regular variety.  
  
"Understand *that*," said Greylle with a trace of irony. Well, rather a lot actually. "Okay, come by Furinkan High School when you can. i'll bring a can of tuna when i can manage it. In the meantime, let me see that shoulder."  
  
Luna tolerated the examination silently for a moment. "How bad is it?"  
  
"Bad. It's infected. Hang on for a moment." Greylle put his hands over the wound.  
  
"You that fester and you that sicken, Against you defenses swiftly quicken, The unclean stain burn away, Healing magic cleanse, i pray. Cure Disease."  
  
Luna startled as she felt *something* weave swiftly through her body and leave her feeling better than she had in months. She turned startled to the youth. "How did you do that?!"  
  
"Luna. Just because you don't remember Basalt, don't forget there were Healers in the Moon Kingdom." Greylle was thinking of psychics with healing abilities as he jauntily waved and left. At least he had a point to investigate now. Beryl's fortress.   
  
Luna gaped some more, thinking of those who had a connection with the Silver Crystal. Which meant Royal Family. Some bastard child off the Royal Line, and therefore not one who would normally get even the slightest chance at the throne. But if Usagi didn't show, that meant there was still a chance.  
  
------------  
  
A redhaired girl grumbled at the overweight man accompanying her.  
  
"Look, we need a place to stay, or do you really think that I want to turn into that *thing* regularly?"  
  
Ranma glared at her father. "If you haven't noticed, I turn into a *girl*. You fell in 'Always Hungry Or Sleepy Bear-thing', I got 'Magical Girl'. Who has time for fiancees?!"  
  
"You do," pointed out Genma. "It is a matter of family honor."  
  
Ranma winced. Honor. Why'd it have to be family honor? She couldn't walk away from *that*. "Can I at least get some decent clothes? These just look *so* tacky on me when I'm a girl."  
  
It was Genma's turn to wince. Why had Ranma chosen to fall in THAT spring. He'd heard from the Guide that there was a Spring Of Drowned Girl, but no Ranma HAD to be difficult and fall in a spring that had mental effects.  
  
Watching Ranma checking out guys, or looking at dresses on display, was pretty much causing hackles to rise in Genma Saotome. She was, however, easier to control than the real Ranma. And cooked better. Genma still didn't get any respect, but Ranma-chan was a LOT more polite than Ranma-kun.  
  
Ranma hung her head to conceal a smirk. Just seeing the horror and digust creeping her father out whenever she stopped to admire a "pretty dress" or "cute guy" was enough to keep up the subterfuge.  
  
And while turning into a girl was pretty damn lousy, at least there were aspects of a powerup in this. Higher strength, higher speed, good nightvision and increased sense of smell. There were problems like pain from someone blowing a dog whistle, but there were *some* advantages to being a supergirl.  
  
"Ah, here we are, I just need to send this postcard, then we camp out one more night and be in Nerima tomorrow. We *should* have been there before now."  
  
"Ain't my fault," pointed out Ranma. "Just be sure you keep that umbrella handy, that bear-spit of yours messes up my hair something awful and I ain't no chew toy." 


	5. Chapter 5: Wild Pitch

Retake  
Chapter 5:  
  
  
Characters by others. Except for some who aren't.  
  
----------  
  
Soun had picked up the postcard and grew immediately excited and tearful. "At last. At last Ranma is coming!"  
  
"Kasumi!" Soun frowned a little at no Kasumi in the kitchen but found her asleep in her bed a moment later. "Kasumi, wake up, family meeting!"  
  
Kasumi stirred, then sat up in shock. "It... it was all a dream?!"  
  
Soun was a little puzzled, but this was too important to get sidetracked. "I'll need to see you downstairs quickly after I get the others."  
  
"Nabiki?!" Soun was even more puzzled on finding Nabiki asleep in her room. How odd. Well, less odd than Kasumi, at least.  
  
"Whszzzp?" Nabiki blearily focussed on her father, then her eyes got wide. "What?!"  
  
This was really strange, decided Soun. Not Nabiki taking a nap, but Nabiki coming instantly awake like that. Maybe there was a cold or something going around. Yes, that must be it. That would explain Kasumi AND Nabiki both taking naps. "Akane? Akane? AKANE?!!"  
  
Nabiki and Kasumi came running at the note of dismay in their father's voice, having changed from bedclothes to normal daywear in record time. Though if they had any attention to spare, each would have noted the other appearing rather mussed and tousled.  
  
Akane stirred slightly and brushed some of the purple hair out of her face, cuddling a little closer to the nice warm body next to her. ?!!?  
  
Shampoo moaned. It was nice and warm and her headache was gone and... someone was in bed with her?  
  
Akane woke the rest of the way up and shrieked. Shampoo shrieked at the same time. Both leapt from the bed simultaneously.  
  
"What does crazy pervert girl do?" Shampoo asked in a panic, not even noticing that she'd gotten Japanese 101 somewhere over the course of the afternoon.  
  
"That's MY Line!" Akane was wondering what was going on. And why was this Chinese girl in HER pajamas.  
  
Shampoo decided she needed to get away NOW. That man over there was crying and that girl over there was covering her eyes and saying "oh my" a lot and that other girl was just gaping. Nope, she needed this situation about as much as she needed this problem about the redheaded girl Ranma.  
  
----------  
  
It wasn't generally known, but the current Emperor of Japan chaffed a bit at the usual ingoings at Court. His was publically a figurehead position, but behind the scenes he had a lot of power and influence still.   
  
Right now, behind his polite mask of indifference, he was grinning at the turmoil he'd just caused. A little bit of divinely inspired untruth, but when one's honored and divine ancestor suggested it, who was he to resist the chance to scandalize the sycophants and career politicians?  
  
"...b-b-b-but a *gaijin*?!"  
  
Naruhito nodded once. "Yes, I'm afraid it's confirmed. A distant relation to be sure, but this Greylle Shard is directly related to the Imperial Line and another foreign royalty as well. I would ask that you be discrete and not disturb his education."  
  
One could safely say that if marauding Oni had landed on the lawn right now to challenge them to a tag race, most of those present would actually be relieved.  
  
"Why is he here in Japan? Is he seeking to 'get in touch with his roots'?" One woman asked, only a slight tremor in her voice.  
  
"No, actually he's here to learn Japanese and then play baseball. Here are his stats." Naruhito gestured and a handout was passed out by a darksuited individual.  
  
"Are these accurate?!" Eyes got large as various people realized what the figures represented.  
  
"Yes, even though he's a High School sophomore, his fastball exceeds 850kph. He practices the martial arts, and I've heard he's interested in learning more of the code of Bushido." Naruhito's right eye twitched as he imagined the group of reporters as a pack of wild carnivores who had just found something they weren't sure about.  
  
"but a *gaijin*," repeated a woman for what seemed like the twentieth time.  
  
"Foreign royalty, and the boy has been kept ignorant of his heritage so that he could develop a more practical education free of the prejudices and court politics that might otherwise have occurred."  
  
-----------  
  
"FIANCEE?!" This coming simultaneously from three different daughters and yet had a certain degree of dismay within their tone.  
  
"I hope he's not a gaijin, they're so... foreign," said Kasumi trying to find a way of stating politely that she thought this was a bonehead idea.  
  
"Is he cute?" Nabiki waggled her eyebrows expressively. "Rich? Tall? A foreign made all road vehicle with light mileage and rugged good looks?"  
  
"HE IS *NOT* MY BOYFRIEND!" Akane shouted, then turned her head. She had her heart set on Doctor Tofu, and anyway - didn't they have to figure out why that girl Shampoo had been in bed with her?!  
  
"He's the son of a good friend of mine: Genma Saotome. We made this deal years ago."  
  
"Waitaminute, hold the phone." Nabiki held her hands out in a t-shape. "You don't mean Shard-san then, do you?" Then Nabiki noticed something that she'd been in too much of a hurry to notice before. When had she gotten a manicure?  
  
"Oh," said Kasumi, a little disappointed and relieved all at once. Akane would be a better match for Shard-san anyway. Americans were a little weird and their women were always beating on their men, so Akane ought to fit in just fine.  
  
"Huh? Oh good," sighed Akane.  
  
"They've been on a training trip and recently went to China. They'll be here anytime soon."  
  
*CRASH!*   
  
"That must be them!" Soun began running towards the door, Nabiki just barely ahead of him.  
  
"Run! Run for your lives!"  
  
"BRreeeeauuugghhhhH! SNORlax!"  
  
------------  
  
Artemis let himself in. "Mamoru-san, Luna's found something!"  
  
Mamoru Chiba visibly restrained himself. "Another false lead on Usako? Or on Dark Generals that we don't have the manpower to go after anyway?"  
  
"An ally in an alley," began Artemis, going on to a brief description of the mysterious encounter. "The problem being that Luna suspects a trap."  
  
"Luna's paranoid," said Mamoru. He didn't have much patience left with Luna since the Senshi had vanished.  
  
"She also isn't sure about the name of the high school, she was so busy trying to remember the details of that bastard line from Queen Serenity I's half-brother, that she forgot it."  
  
"Why could I tell that was coming?" Mamoru sighed. "Whenever it's important she's either getting the details wrong or forgetting them entirely. Such as coming up with the 'Sailor Moon' identity when she should have remembered Usagi was 'Princess Serenity' and that there was *no* Senshi of the Moon."  
  
"Yes, well..." Artemis really didn't want to get into this argument.  
  
"Well, we have only one thing we can do. Ignore her."  
  
"Uhm..."  
  
Mamoru shook his head. "Okay fine. We stake out high schools for someone we have only a vague description of."  
  
"A tall blonde gaijin gymnast? How many of those do you think are in Tokyo?"  
  
---------  
  
"I need a bath," said the redhaired girl with a tone of absolute disgust in her voice.  
  
Of course, at one point she'd been completely swallowed by the Bear-Thing, and was currently wearing a slimy coating of drool. So having a nearly overwhelming desire to bathe was not too hard to believe.  
  
Fortunately the beast had gotten itself under control after a few minutes, though Nabiki (having spent some time sticking out of the corner of its mouth like some struggling cigar) was watching it with a manner of both digust and alarm.  
  
The 1500 pound creature was clumsily writing with a pen and paper, and Soun was reading it and occasionally nodding and making some sort of comment, but Nabiki was NOT going near the creature if she could help it.  
  
In fact she was giving serious thought that if the big beast was allowed to stay overnight, that she should go see Shard-san about spending the night there. She could help him with kanji or use some similar excuse if nothing else. Or maybe one of her factors could put her up.  
  
That she'd heard someone (a boy named Konjo) make a remark to a group of mixed friends that Nabiki couldn't possibly have a relationship with the foreign boy. Because if he did then he would freeze parts of his anatomy off required to make a marriage work. Which reminded Nabiki that she needed to come up with some PR. She'd have just avenged herself if the large crowd hadn't come up with a number of suggestions and additions to that statement, indicating that it had become widely accepted as fact.  
  
Akane had gotten very hot and sweaty and announced she was going to go bring the girl a spare gi and take a bath herself.  
  
Nabiki frowned. SHE wanted a bath too, but you couldn't comfortably fit that many people in the bathroom. "I'm going to change clothes. Watch yourself Kasumi."  
  
"aaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Akane came running past to grab the table and turn around to go back towards the bathroom.  
  
"What's wrong THIS TIME, Akane?" Nabiki was getting heartily sick and tired of Akane always making a scene about every little thing.  
  
"There's a pervert in the bathtub," Akane exclaimed.  
  
-------  
  
"So what do we do?" One reporter asked another.  
  
The press in Japan was decidedly different from the press in the United States and certain other locales.   
  
The American press, for example, exulted in "digging up the dirt" and "damn the consequences". Anything done by a public figure of any notoriety that was even slightly scandalous was to be dragged out in large bold face and poured over for the maximum effect. There was a common predominant agenda, though this was less a conspiracy as it was the same sort of "pull together" mentality that saw police officers covering up each other's gaffes blunders and outright impropriety. With the addition that those commonly able to work their way up through this particular rank and file had a certain mindset and talent that was more treacherous and backstabbing than the majority of politicos they followed.  
  
The Japanese press was a whole different breed of fish. While they might "dig up dirt" - they had an overwhelming desire to present their own country in the best possible light at all times. There was also the desire to not make waves and not dwell on "petty issues". They were Japanese, after all.  
  
So a core group of reporters were meeting together with editors and working out a game plan.  
  
An *American* directly linked to the Imperial Line. Scandalous. And not likely to sit well with the Japanese public.  
  
How to keep it quiet, then gauge the correct time for the news to be slowly released to the public, that was the problem here.  
  
In an American news conference, the idea that the current president had a relation who was a foreign national would have been screamed in banners, there would have been daily updates with computer animation cutscenes and a fancy name like "Heritage Crisis" to keep the public's interest focussed on the problem, even if the average member of the public likely wouldn't care much at all.  
  
These were Japanese, however. Those assigned to work with the Emperor and the upper strata of the society were not inclined towards rashness or spectacle.  
  
So in a group of reporters teleconferencing with their editors, a decision was reached in quick order.  
  
Ignore for now and dignity would be maintained.  
  
--------  
  
Akane was redefining glare as she stared at Ranma. Relax her attitude about boys just a little and *wham* here came a pervert trying to take advantage of it.  
  
"'Spring of Drowned Bear-Demon' seems to be more accurate, actually," suggested Nabiki. Maybe she should invest in some spirit wards around her room.  
  
"Yes, well, I usually have better control," suggested Genma.  
  
"He's either eating or sleeping usually, in either form," grumbled Ranma.  
  
"So cold water turns him into a hungry monster, and you into a girl with weird ears," noted Nabiki aloud.  
  
Soun laughed. "Well, son, your problem isn't so bad after all."  
  
"Huh?" Ranma wondered what planet Soun was from that turning into a girl with weird ears and a tail while having a father that was 1500 pounds of appetite was not considered "so bad."  
  
"These are my three daughters. Kasumi is 19. Nabiki, she's 17. And then there's Akane. She's 16. Pick any one you like, and she'll be your fiancee."  
  
Three blinks as it penetrated that this not only meant that their father still was going with this engagement idea, that accepting it meant that the Bear-Demon would be showing up on a regular basis in their lives.  
  
"Oh, he wants Akane," said Kasumi, trying to push Akane forward.  
  
"Nabiki, he definitely wants Nabiki," suggested Akane, trying to get behind Nabiki.  
  
"Kasumi would seem the wisest choice," indicated Nabiki as she tried to duck behind Kasumi.  
  
"No, Akane's the martial artist."  
  
"Nabiki would certainly be the best candidate."  
  
"Kasumi should do it, the duty falls on the eldest, right?"  
  
"Akane!" "Nabiki!" "Kasumi!"  
  
The three girls had not fought since they were all very young children. A shoving match suddenly erupting between the three was completely unexpected but somehow inevitable as each sought to have one of the others pushed forward on this great occasion.  
  
"But Father already engaged me to Shard-sama," said Kasumi realizing that a small apartment didn't take that long to clean and she might be able to go on and take some college at last. "And Akane doesn't like boys."  
  
"Uhmmmf," said Nabiki, wondering where Kasumi had developed that kind of strength. "No, no, I'm going after Shard-san."  
  
"Hey, Greylle-chan is MY boyfriend! ERK!" Akane turned red and flushed as she realized what she had just said. During her moment of shock she found herself pushed forward.  
  
"Akane it is!" Nabiki and Kasumi chorused.  
  
Akane hesitated for a brief moment with a "deer in the headlights" expression before she proved that she was indeed the Heir of the Tendo School, slipping around her sisters' hands and coming up behind them to push them both forward. "No, no. I insist. BOTH of you can marry Ranma."  
  
Ranma was of two minds about this whole scene. He wasn't anxious to get married - hell no! He thought the idea of an arranged marriage was NOT something he wanted to experience personally. Especially when he had just turned sixteen and hadn't experienced anything of life other than martial arts.  
  
On the other hand, Ranma wasn't at all thrilled with the idea of being passed over like stale bread. What was this, Marked Down from being a Blue Light Special?  
  
Kasumi revealed that she had remembered some of her martial arts training and suddenly Nabiki was practically stumbling over the table into Ranma's lap. "Well, Nabiki, didn't you say you needed a new hobby?"  
  
Nabiki didn't like this. She preferred being in control of the situation. Holding up one finger, she said in a low voice to Ranma: "You don't want to be my iinazuke. Trust me on this. Akane's a martial artist and Kasumi's a great cook. Now excuse me for a moment."  
  
Nabiki turned back to try and send either Kasumi or Akane back. She wasn't a warrior, but she wasn't a quitter either.  
  
-------  
  
Greylle walked home, a long day but he'd definitely made a potentially useful contact. He could get more details out of Luna, possibly connect with Mamoru Chiba and Artemis. Some of those Silver Millenium gadgets could come in *quite* handy. Just a spare Mercury Computer could increase his capabilities enormously. A disguise pen or compact could be hooked into a marionette's circuitry, and possibly result in something like Cutey Honey's transformations.  
  
"Excuse me, sir."  
  
The transformed dragon blinked as he saw three men approach. Black suits, black glasses, fairly massive weightlifter builds. They moved like professionals - military or combat forces, not quite the gliding walk that ninjas or martial artists often manifested. "Yes?"  
  
The lead suit bowed while the other two looked off to the sides. "Mister Shard, my employer wants to make you an offer."  
  
"Uh *huh*," Greylle wasn't sure about this. Sure he was fairly strong, and could always shift to dragon if he was led into a trap, but if this was Yakuza they'd have access to stuff that could really hurt him. Not to mention the marionette he was putting together.  
  
"He wants to meet with you tomorrow at 9am, if you're amenable to it."  
  
"i'm in school then."  
  
"Not a problem. It will be arranged."  
  
"Fine then," said Greylle. Didn't sound like Yakuza. Some major corporation perhaps? But how would they have found out he had gadgets that... Nabiki. Somehow Nabiki had found out about some of his gadgetry, perhaps she'd seen his watch, and sold him out. Or at least the info. Clearly he hadn't been careful enough.  
  
"Tomorrow, then." The three suits backed off and left.  
  
Greylle pondered for another moment, deciding some sort of payback was mandated against Nabiki, but he'd have to see what developed before he settled on something. Maybe he could contact the office and have one of the Curses Of Embarassment hurled on her. Nothing too debilitating, but something that would annoy her on a regular basis. Hmmmm.  
  
---------  
  
Soun Tendo stared.  
  
There had been long a degree of rivalry between Nabiki and Akane. One of the reasons Nabiki had abandoned the martial arts, perhaps THE reason, was that Akane had a greater natural talent for physical violence. Enjoyed it more too.  
  
Soun had expected that the daughters would grow out of it.  
  
Of course, he was still waiting for Akane to grow out of the "smashing bricks as therapy" stage and for Nabiki to stop declaring everything she could to be hers.  
  
Watching all three of his daughters arguing about who would make the best match for the gaijin as opposed to Genma's son, well, it brought back memories. In some ways it seemed as if ten years had been stripped from his daughters and at any moment Kimiko would come in and have to break up the fight.  
  
Kasumi tried logic. Well, sort of. "Ranma's a martial artist, and since you hate boys Akane, you're in luck. Ranma's half girl!"  
  
"Gee, thanks a lot," grumbled Ranma.  
  
Akane responded in kind. "Oh no you don't. He's a pervert. I've had more than enough of perverts. You need someone to take care of, and he certainly strikes me as needing all the help he can get."  
  
Ranma twitched, just a little. "You know, I didn't ask to be engaged to nobody."  
  
"On the other hand, Nabiki could really use someone in her life."  
  
"Excuse me? Does little Miss Bouncy here strike you as having two yen to scrape together? I'm the 'heartless mercenary ice bitch' remember?"  
  
"Uhm," began Ranma.  
  
"Did I say that?" Akane tried to remember. "Was that after you put the frog in my bed when I was twelve?"  
  
Ranma smiled as an idea occurred. Then he quietly got up and left.  
  
"No it was last week!" Nabiki glared at Akane. "Besides, shouldn't KASUMI be the first choice?"  
  
"I'll go for that," agreed Akane.  
  
"Excuse me!"  
  
---------  
  
Greylle walked up the stairs, wishing as he had every time he'd done them over the past three weeks, that he could simply fly up to the landing at the end of the hallway. The steps were narrow, not meant for the over-tall (he kept finding that water pipe that hung down over the third floor landing), and oddly steep.  
  
Unfortunately, even if he "went dragon" it was entirely too narrow for his bulk.  
  
He opened the door to his apartment and immediately *knew* that something was decidedly different.  
  
Maybe it was the two sky blue eyes blinking at him.  
  
The familiar-looking girl pointed at him and turned to the Mercury marionette. "This him?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
Greylle could *see* the grid and crosshairs appear in those otherwise guileless blue eyes.  
  
"Recording data. Master set. Name: Greylle Shard. Species: Dragon, silver, transformed to human, nordic. Done." The marionette shook her head.   
  
"Ami? What did you do?" Greylle asked in a very reasonable tone.  
  
"Waiiii!" The marionette who had an extremely close resemblence to Usagi Tsukino launched herself. "Yes! Greylle-chan sukii desu!"  
  
*WHAM!*  
  
"In English, Usagi." Ami blinked repeatedly and cocked her head. "I can't understand it, everything seems to work fine except for her balance adjustors."  
  
Usagi picked herself up again and succeeded this time in latching onto her target.  
  
"Ami, what DID you do?"  
  
Ami quickly explained that she'd found some notes about using a pokeball's matter/energy transformation to finish manufacturing processes.  
  
"That hasn't been experimented on because there's some serious dangers involved. Such as producing defective units." Greylle let out a deep breath and tried to extricate himself. He was finding it unusually difficult. "Uprated strength?"  
  
"Unit Usagi has 1,200 horsepower," bragged Usagi. "Tritanium frame. According to my specs, I can run at a top speed of 140kph with a cruising safe speed of 75kph."  
  
"I noticed that your design replaced her odango with twin ponytails. Why?" Ami asked.  
  
"More practical." Greylle rubbed his forehead and wished that Excedrin had been on the budget. "Okay, Usagi, i'm going to need to do an exam and see what isn't working."  
  
--------  
  
"Well, I guess the only solution is to have Ranma engaged to all three of my daughters. If a primary one must be selected - it should be Akane since she *is* the Heir to the Tendo style." Soun proclaimed in his infinite wisdom.  
  
The three daughters let out a simultaneous sigh. Being engaged to a gaijin hadn't sounded nearly so bad after they'd seen a sullen girl turn into a surly boy.  
  
"Just wonderful. I... Say, where's Ranma anyway?" Nabiki being the first to note that the "prize" had escaped sometime during the argument.  
  
Genma blinked as he realized he'd fallen asleep during the scene and hadn't realized what was going on. "That ungrateful boy!"  
  
"So, Ranma's a catgirl, huh?"  
  
Kasumi blinked "Catgirl, Nabiki? Like in 'Hyper Police'?"  
  
"Yup, redheaded catgirl." Nabiki paused to consider possibilities.  
  
"Just don't say that in front of Ranma," suggested Genma. "He... has a problem with cats. He has just been assuming he's some sort of magical girl, if he knew he turned into a *cat*girl, he'd be impossible to be around."  
  
"I sense a story here," said Nabiki. "Unfortunately Ranma seems to have fled."  
  
"Ungrateful boy," repeated Genma. "Still, he'll be back."  
  
-----------  
  
Ranma grumbled as he walked along. This was not a good day. Bad enough to be engaged to someone he'd never met, but to be passed around like a hot potato. Not that he could blame them, this kind of curse would major weird out anybody.  
  
At least he'd lost Shampoo.  
  
"Excuse please?"  
  
Ranma made a note to never ever think something like that again.  
  
Sure enough, the purple haired girl was wearing a Chinese jumpsuit and looking nervous about something. "Excuse please, have you seen tall blonde boy about this tall, fairly strong look? Or redhaired girl with pointed ears, she about this tall?"  
  
"Uhm, no." Ranma said, grinning and shaking his head rapidly.  
  
Shampoo deflated a little further. "Shampoo having very bad, very weird, day."  
  
"Me too," quietly grumbled Ranma, then froze as he felt the rain coming down.  
  
"Shampoo think this day suck wind very very much. Sham... HUH?!" Shampoo's mouth hung open and her eyes were wide.  
  
"Heh heh," said Ranma, back up a few steps.  
  
"You... is Ranma?" Shampoo's mind went into a whirl. "Ranma is boy or girl?"  
  
"Heh, well..."  
  
"You is girl?!"  
  
"Hey! I'm a guy!"  
  
Shampoo looked thoughtful for a moment. "This day really suck wind something awful. NOW what is Shampoo to do?"  
  
"Well, I gotta be going, places to do, things to see, you know how it is. Ri-mfffff?!"  
  
Shampoo leaned back from her kiss, making a brief face. "Would much prefer do this when you is guy again, but Shampoo screw up too often lately and not think Great Grandmama understand."  
  
"Hah?"  
  
Shampoo explained patiently. "Shampoo is girl. Prefer guy to do kiss with. Except boys back in village either wimp like Floss or scruffy looking nerfherder like Guan Yu, or just plain annoying like Mousse."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Now Shampoo marry Ranma and everybody be happy!"  
  
"AAaaaaaaaaaa!"  
  
Shampoo frowned at the dustcloud retreating into the distance. "Shampoo reitata- reitara- repeat. Today suck wind." Shampoo thought a few moments. Maybe if her dream had been accurate, she could find *other* airen!  
  
---------  
  
"Okay, Usagi, close your chest panel."  
  
The twin ponytailed blonde android complied. "Well, Master?"  
  
Greylle winced. "Could you use some other term? As to your status. Do either of you know the theories behind the architecture of the Ishii Kairo?"  
  
Unsurprisingly, it was the Ami unit who responded. "The Ishii Kairo was developed by you in your lifetime as Mamoru Tengoku, a marionette repairman who had several theories of alternate developments for the marionettes of Terratoo. The Ishii Kairo or 'Will Circuit' was developed as an alternate to the less easily produced Otome Kairo or 'Maiden Circuit'. In addition to the main neuralnet brain located in the head, the area corresponding to a human heart is equipped with a set of three linked storage/processing units. Instead of the Otome Kairo's ability to instantly grant emotion and a childlike mentality, the Ishii Kairo instead learns patterns of emotive response and behavioral guidelines."  
  
"There's more to it than that." Greylle sat down and looked around. "Man, it's gonna be crowded tonight. Don't suppose someone made tea? No, huh? Just as well, i suppose. Remember that you're not hooked up yet for eating or drinking. More upgrades to make, oh dear."  
  
"Emot-o whatsist?" Usagi was lost. Available database insufficient. She made a note to download specifics on her own design. It could come in handy.  
  
"The Ishii Kairo was originally designed to act in a similar manner to human brains. AnEmotive/Creative part, a Rational/Mechanical part, and an Animal part. Each relates to the android brain in a different manner, adding its input and processing regarding a specific aspect of the world around it. Like the Otome Kairo, it's based on engram technology."  
  
Mercury nodded. "In Usagi's case, I was able to find and download a scan done of the original."  
  
"Don't do that without checking with me first." Greylle shook his head again. "In any case, what you did was jumpstart the Emotive, the equivelant of the human brain's Left Lobe. However in the construction process, a defect formed in the balance and control sections. Usagi will always be a bit clumsy and overly prone to extremes of emotion. Not that this isn't perfectly in keeping with the original."  
  
Usagi scratched her head. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"  
  
"THAT we'll have to see about. Now i'm going to get a shower and get ready for bed. You two... try to clean this place up and find a corner to sleep in."  
  
--------  
  
"RANMA! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!" This was followed by the sound of something breakable getting reduced to smaller pieces.  
  
Ranma stopped. Did she *really* want to continue in this direction? No, not really. Though a fight *might* actually allow her to unleash some stress, the way this day had been going would seem to indicate that something *bad* would result.  
  
Next thing you knew, Pops would be engaging him to boys! Nope, didn't want to go there. Didn't even want to come close to the neighborhood.  
  
Which meant...  
  
*BONK!*  
  
Genma lowered the streetsign, grabbed Ranma by the collar, and dragged his troublesome child back to the dojo. The boy wasn't going to upset all his plans THAT easily.  
  
-------  
  
Ami watched, monitoring the apartment around her.  
  
Greylle slept, after disentangling himself from Usagi's attempts to treat him as a plush toy.  
  
Usagi's Ishii Kairo was advanced enough to emulate sleep while in a minimal power mode. Her dreams were attempting to process some of the data she'd downloaded earlier.  
  
Ami tugged lightly at the cord leading from her "belly button" to the Mister Fusion (a portable fusion device that ran off water) and which was running her systems directly while her batteries would continue to keep their charge.  
  
She wasn't sufficiently developed to emulate sleep patterns, though she was observing both her Master's and Usagi's sleep in order to further things.  
  
Not knowing what else to do, she hadn't altered the four thieves very much. She'd scanned files, and had returned them to the home noted in three of those files. Placing them in their beds, with a suggestion that they treat their visit as a dream, was a method of putting off what to do with them until later.  
  
Listening to the radio talk show, Ami had discovered that thieves were punished. Usually by incarceration, something called "community service", and/or primitive attempts at behavior modification. Another show had revealed something called "hypnosis" which could modify behavior to stop bad habits like snoring, cigarette smoking, or overeating.  
  
There hadn't been time to make many modifications. So Ami had treated it like a computer problem, which she *did* understand thanks to the files she'd downloaded on the subject. If you couldn't fix it now, you left a back door so that you could get in later and fix it.  
  
Hopefully that wouldn't take long.  
  
-------  
  
Kasumi prepared for bed in her usual manner, as if it had been an ordinary day.  
  
Excluding waking up in her bed in late afternoon with vague memories of a dream in which she'd snuck into Shard-san's room only to be sucked inside some kind of softball. (What THAT dream meant was obviously going to take a lot of figuring out.) Also excluding that she still wasn't off the hook as far as being engaged to a brash and impolite young man who turned into a girl at odd times. Also excluding the fact that the young man was currently chained up in one of the spare rooms, or that Akane was apparently sleeping around with foreign girls (though she should have seen it coming with all her talk about hating boys), or that she seemed to have a gap of five hours of her day.  
  
Her father's explanation seemed the most logical: some virus going around and she and Nabiki had just taken a quick lie down. She still didn't feel quite right.  
  
So she had a quick lie down with her current romance novel, sipping on a chamomile blend tea as she had one of the few moments not involved in meeting the needs of her family in her day. Her baths, reading in the evening after her last chores, and...   
  
Kasumi stopped. What else did she do? She was drawing a blank. There was something though. Oh yes, when she got out her henshin pen and transformed to Sailor Triton (sailorsuited warrior of love and housework) and fought evil...  
  
Kasumi set down the romance novel. She was obviously running a fever. HER?! Wearing a skirt that short and fighting demonic beings? She HAD to stop reading Nabiki's manga.  
  
------  
  
Akane sulked. Here she was engaged to a baka hentai. Her heart belonged to Doctor Tofu! Even if Doctor Tofu only had eyes for Kasumi. And Kasumi couldn't see anything beyond a silly-acting clown since that was how Doctor Tofu acted around her.  
  
SHE had to be engaged to someone who turned into a girl. Someone who decided not to bother telling anyone about this, no doubt like those perverts at school who continually tried to peep. Well, fine. She'd find a way out of this. Get Nabiki or Kasumi to marry the freak.  
  
If she had to be engaged to someone why couldn't they have been like Doctor Tofu? With his shaggy blonde hair, and filling out his baseball uniform so well, and those crystalline blue eyes looking at her in that special way?  
  
Why couldn't...?!  
  
Akane beat her head against the desk. Bad thoughts, bad thoughts!  
  
Taking a deep breath, Akane focussed again on Doctor Tofu. That cute smile and those red eyes, Chinese dress stretched out over tight curves, purple... hair?!?!  
  
*WHAM!WHAM!WHAM!WHAM!* Bad thoughts, VERY bad thoughts!  
  
-------  
  
Nabiki stared out at the night. She didn't like this situation much at all.  
  
Most people thought that money was the "be all" of Nabiki's existence. This wasn't quite true. Money was simply the easiest way to keep score. Her mischief, the money, it was all about what you could do with it - control. Control of herself and control of her environment. And if that meant a reputation as the Ice Queen/Iron Bitch then that was a job requirement she would have to fulfill. Power as measured in fear, money, and control.  
  
In a perfectly rational world, everything fit within the paradigm taught in school. And within that paradigm, money and control were the primary things that translated as Power.  
  
Nabiki had recently gotten a glimpse at a whole different order of power. Not the martial arts that her sister practiced and excelled at. That had been demonstrated quite amply to be ineffective in certain circumstances.  
  
Magic was real.  
  
Dragons. Alien time travelling princes. Healing spells. Magic curses.   
  
Not one damn hint of any of these in the courses she'd taken. Yet she'd had all practically rubbed in her face of late.  
  
Nabiki listened to the rhythmic banging from Akane's room and looked out into the night. Nabiki also said something to the effect of what the paradigm taught in the schools could do to itself.  
  
A glance down at her hands, with what appeared to be a fairly expensive manicure that she *knew* she hadn't paid for. Once she'd had a chance she'd checked herself over quite extensively, and had gone to have a brief conversation with Kasumi about doing dishes. She'd examined Kasumi as best she could without being obvious. Then looked over Akane similarly before returning to the haven of her room.  
  
Nabiki knew from her self-examination that *something* had happened in the missing two hours of her day. An old scar from the day she'd given up martial arts (Akane had "accidently" thrown her through a dojo wall and into a rock on the other side) was missing. So was a little scar on one finger, an old burn from where she'd briefly tried to become a scientific genius (the less of that said, the better as far as she was concerned), and the callouses on the bottom of her feet were missing.  
  
In short, her skin was softer and smoother than she could remember it. The tiny fine hairs she'd had along her arms and legs were likewise missing. She could find no blemishes or marks on her skin. For this to have happened, she would have had to spend at least a week at a very expensive spa. Just the repairs on the split ends in her bangs would have taken longer than two hours.  
  
Which led to the obvious conclusion: Magic.  
  
Could this be something the dragon had done? Some kind of payback for having put her through the ordeal in the stream? Possibly.  
  
Was she about to let it go? Possibly.  
  
She'd considered getting even with the dragon. The problem was how. She could reveal the dragon's location, selling it to a news channel. IF the dragon was still there, and IF it remained where it could be caught, and IF it wasn't like the dragons of legends and able to change shape, and IF they remembered to pay her, and IF it didn't get away, then she could turn a profit on the deal.  
  
However, if any of those IFs went wrong, she'd be destroying her credibility at the least. At the worst, she'd quietly vanish at some point because the dragon would track her down and EAT her.  
  
Nabiki didn't like that idea. Not one little bit. She was allergic to being eaten. Heck, she'd have trouble just with the amount of pain those jaws could inflict on her admittedly tender little body.  
  
A shadow passed across the moon.  
  
*ZOOM!*  
  
Slowly, the large bump under the bedsheets poked her head out again. Just a cloud. Silly.   
  
Nabiki got up, turned off her light, and chuckled at the silliness of it all. There wasn't any reason for her to concern herself with this. No reason to change her behavior. None at... all.  
  
Nabiki stared at her ceiling.  
  
During her "gonna be the greatest mad scientist in the world" phase (outgrown when she was twelve), Nabiki had put a few of those nite-glo stars up on her ceiling. She'd dreamed at that point of becoming an intrepid explorer of outer space, and Akane could wear a red shirt and be beamed down onto strange planets while Nabiki wore blue, smirked and said how fascinating it all was. There hadn't been any particular pattern to what she'd done with the stars, and her father had discouraged the watching of gaijin sci-fi programs shortly thereafter.  
  
Except that those stars were now arranged in a pattern. A very recognizable pattern.  
  
"After school, go to the roof."  
  
Nabiki stared at the message for long sleepless hours. 


	6. Chapter 6: Change of pitchers

Retake chapter 6  
  
by Metroanime, who really didn't intend more than 2-6k on this idea.Really. This was just gonna be an alternate ending to the real ending. As far as continuity goes this is still a speculative ending: the real ending has Greylle go off into a relationship where he literally can't return those feelings and goes on to eventually die in a blaze of glory rather than be a fifth wheel with no useful skills or purpose. His soul reincarnated eventually as an Espeon (psychic evolution of Eevee) on a regular pokemon world.  
  
  
Disclaimer: aw, c'mon, you know that the vast majority of these characters are owned by other people. For example the whole 'marionette' concept was first broached in the old B&W film "Metropolis", though the 'Otome Kairo' and actual use of the term 'marionette' for a female shaped android came via a fellow the name of Satoru Akahori in his series "Sabre Marionette J" though i kinda wonder if he'd recognize it by the time i get done with it...  
  
--------  
  
Though Nerima in Japan in a RM universe was strange, certain things followed a pattern. Which indicated that while there was a lot of Chaos, it didn't have complete domain.  
  
And so, even with Ranma in Nerima, day followed night.  
  
Greylle woke up to discover that sometime during the night, Mercury had somehow figured out what a Furinkan High School girl's uniform looked like and had made two sets. She and Usagi were discussing the odd raiment, and wondered at how anyone could indicate they thought the Senshi costumes were silly if this was the alternative.  
  
Getting ready for class (he still didn't have a Furinkan boy's uniform that fit) was quick and simple. Mainly because he didn't have a lot of things he could do in that half hour. Other than try to convince the two to stay in the apartment and not make any noise. Ami suggested building a television, and though he'd had this feeling of doom, Greylle had OK'd it.   
  
After reaching school and settling into his cramped little desk, Greylle began to wonder if maybe he shouldn't have.  
  
"LOOK AT THAT! Akane must have dumped Greylle-san!"  
  
"Wow, he's a hunk."  
  
Greylle blinked and ambled to the window, curious. When he saw the pair arguing near the gates he tried to keep from visibly reacting. He was so HAPPY! Ranma had finally gotten his lazy butt here and now Greylle could the blazes out of Nerima! Yayyyy!  
  
The other students saw the lone tear tracking Greylle's face, saw the gaijin trying to control himself (not realizing he was trying to keep from laughing in relief and the tear was actually from biting his tongue). The conclusions they came to were obvious if completely ludicrous to anyone who knew better.  
  
---------  
  
Akane looked up from her argument with Ranma and saw Greylle at the window. "Oh great. How am I gonna explain this?"  
  
Ranma glanced up, saw a glimpse of the fellow at the window and frowned. "He don't look so tough."  
  
"Why are you still talking to me? Didn't I say that 'when we get to school, I don't know you'? Baka hentai hermaphrodite."  
  
"Hey! You're the one who started it!"  
  
Nabiki walked past the two, uncharacteristically late but then she'd gotten uncharacteristically little sleep. Even with a largely sleepless night, she noted the argument in front of the school gates and decided how much she'd charge to tell people about the "newest couple" and how her sister had "dumped the baseball star like so much bad rice."  
  
"I did not," responded Akane to Ranma. "You're the one who got splashed, you're the one who required us to go see Doctor Tofu, you're the one who argued about baseball not being a valid martial arts style. How can anything as Japanese as baseball NOT be martial arts?"  
  
"Stupid tomboy." Ranma was REALLY beginning to resent this American fellow, and he hadn't even met him. "The *Americans* invented baseball. It's just they didn't know what to do with it afterwards."  
  
"I wasn't referring to it as being a Japanese invention, just that NOW it's Japanese," Akane sniffed.   
  
*Brrring*  
  
"And NOW you've made me late for class!" Akane was getting really upset now.  
  
"WHO made WHO late?" Ranma growled. He didn't want this engagement, he didn't want to attend school, he didn't want to deal with his curse. This was all getting quite frustrating.  
  
Though what he was really tired of the feeling he was getting from three girls, that he was being measured, and coming up short.  
  
He'd show these girls not to dismiss him so easily before he left. Yeah, that'd work.  
  
------  
  
The first class had gone about what one would expect.  
  
Greylle had been able to focus on trying to decipher the "bug splats" that were kanji. During the first half, this had been even easier because both Ranma and Akane were on bucket duty.   
  
The voices of the two tardy began raising in an argument when Akane made one of those "engage mouth while brain is out of gear" manuevers that seemed to occur regularly.   
  
"We are NOT getting married. Just because Dad engaged me to you..."  
  
Greylle continued to try and figure out if that kanji had 23 strokes or if that was just one stroke that bent as it crossed another one. Important when your kanji dictionary was looked up by number of strokes.  
  
The *rest* of the class reacted in typical fashion. The sliding window went open. Girls were excited and babbling about how romantic it was, and how tragic that Akane's love affair with Greylle was cut short. Guys were wanting to know when the Greylle Vs Ranma fight was, or if Akane was planning on trying to keep them both.  
  
"It's our fathers' idea!" "Not my fault!"  
  
Oops. It was only 19 strokes. It really was a bug splat. No wonder he couldn't find it in his dictionary. Greylle blinked. Oh, that sounded like his cue!  
  
Getting up, Greylle walked to the window, the crowd making a place for him. He thought he might as well make this good, it was likely to be his last day and he could always say he gave it his best shot.  
  
Placing one hand on Akane's shoulder, he looked down into her eyes. "Greylle understands. You family honor at stake. Guess it not to be. Greylle relinquish Akane so she find true love and happiness with strange boy."  
  
Greylle turned and walked out the door, trying to keep from laughing in glee. Of course, everyone saw him shaking and came to conclusions again that had little basis in reality.  
  
"That is SO romantic," gushed Yuka.  
  
"Huh?" Akane said a moment before Ranma.  
  
"He's giving up on his own happiness so that YOU can be happy and fulfill your family's honor pledge," Sayuri said with one of those long heartfelt sighs following thereafter.   
  
Daisuke gaped for a second. "Damn. Just like in some samurai epic."  
  
"Huh?" Ranma repeated.  
  
Akane didn't hear, she was busy staring down the hallway.   
  
The teacher clapped three times to get everyone's attention. "Hiroshi. Please get Shard-san back here. Class is *still* in session.  
  
-----------  
  
9am began the usual clangor as the class changed. Not that the students went anywhere, it was just the teacher and the subject that changed.  
  
Of course there were three people (four if you counted the always ignored Gosunkugi) that were not involved in the gossip and swapping of bets and notes.  
  
Greylle, who was ignoring the glares and stares directed towards him by any and all concerns. Merely watching the ticks of the clock and wondering when and WHAT was going to hit the fan.  
  
Akane, who was no longer beet red, wasn't gossiping but she wasn't sure what she would say when it came to that. Everything was so confusing! Confessing that she actually loved Doctor Tofu was out of the question. What THIS crowd would do to that story didn't bear thinking about.  
  
Ranma was asleep.  
  
------  
  
"LOOK AT THAT!"  
  
The "tragic romantic triangle" that involved "Akane being torn between love and duty" that was "just like in a samurai movie" was temporarily shelved.  
  
Greylle left his desk, relishing the chance to at least unfurl his legs. Who'd have thought being tall could be such a problem? Well, at least in Japan it was.  
  
LOTS of long cars. Flags everywhere. What the heck? Well, it *definitely* wasn't Yakuza, and the windows were getting crowded. Might as well return to his desk.  
  
"That's the..."  
  
"There's the Chairman?! And one, two, three, members of the Diet?! And that's the Emperor!" Sayuri was gushing enthusiastically. About what - wasn't too clear.  
  
The intercom crackled to life. "W-w-w-w-would Greylle Shard please come to the office?"  
  
-------  
  
Greylle sat in his chair, unconcerned by all the brass.   
  
In his first life, this would have been intimidating. After boot camp via Valkyries, fighting dragons, shooting out star cruisers, and interacting with Greek and Norse deities on a regular basis, these guys were now somewhat less concerning.  
  
"You guys never heard of subtle?" Greylle said, looking over the crowd. Then he focussed in on one of them. "You're the guy from the cabin."  
  
"And you are considerably smaller than the last time we met." Naruhito nodded and bowed. "May we speak honestly?"  
  
Nabiki gasped. The EMPEROR was bowing as an equal?!  
  
"Why the heck is Nabiki here anyway?" Greylle jerked a thumb towards the girl hiding by the file cabinets.  
  
"Oh heheh." Nabiki smiled up at all the big and imposing types who had just surrounded her.  
  
"What did you say her name was?" A suit took out a pad and pen.  
  
"Nabiki Tendo. Gambling, extortion, loan-sharking, child pornography, and wanna-be Yakuza. Oyabun of what passes for organized crime here at Furinkan," Greylle answered automatically as he was still going over implications.  
  
"EEEEP!" Nabiki eeped, seeing a future where she was wearing a striped suit and making small rocks out of big rocks. She clasped her hands in front of her and turned her most pleading puppy-dog eyes look at her accusser.  
  
"Though she *could* be considering a lifestyle change," continued Greylle.  
  
Nabiki nodded her head so rapidly that she gave herself a headache.  
  
"Unlikely as that might be," continued Greylle, still considering possibilities.  
  
"Smithu, Jonesu, please escort Tendo-san back to her room."   
  
"Wait! Wait! I'll be quiet! You won't even know I'm here!" Nabiki protested as she was forcibly removed from the room. "Hey, do either of you want pictures of my little sister?"   
  
"It was nice of you to provide us a floor show," said Naruhito. "Now though, it is time for business."  
  
----------  
  
Harry (Hieronomus) the Wizard continued to watch from the shelter of his "Not Your Problem" spell (an amazingly useful spell that should be part of any wizard's "on hand" list) as he waited for the right time to send a Monster out.  
  
Which was mainly because Harry (like the typical Ranma protaganist) had trouble changing his plans in order to deal with changing circumstances. He'd already determined (to anyone else's standards) that this dragon was trying not to upset the Balance.  
  
Now the dragon had been revealed as an alien prince? This was more along the duties of MiB than his own community. (Though so far there hadn't been any indications that MiB was real, the wizards had decided that it was best if they did NOT investigate it as so far any such group had left them alone.)   
  
Harry had decided to test the boy with a summoned generic monster, and because he was resistant to altering his plans, he still planned on sending it out. Besides, it would be interesting to see how he responded. The problem being that in three weeks, every time he'd come by this region the boy had been out in public or surrounded by people who *would* notice something bizarre.  
  
The wizard was beginning to consider just hang the consequences and sending a monster anyway. With the level of weirdness already in place, it might hardly be noticed.  
  
----------  
  
If Akane's relationship with a gaijin had qualified as a hot topic for the rumormill, there weren't words readily available to the student body to describe THIS.  
  
Akane had finally gotten tired of questions regarding her "boyfriend" and his connections to the Japanese government and had clobbered the unfortunate boy who'd been asking a question when she'd reached critical mass.  
  
After Suuichiro had been knocked out the window, things finally quieted down some. Only to come to a crashing halt again as Greylle re-entered the room with several high-ranking visitors.  
  
"We are sorry that your class was interrupted," said the Foreign Minister to the teacher.  
  
"It was so nice of you to come to this agreement, Shard-san, it is to be hoped that a month away from Furinkan will not trouble your studies too much." Naruhito bowed low, just shy of the degree needed between equals. Inside he was smirking. Sometimes, he had come to feel, his people needed to be shaken out of their narrow little mindsets. Japan was a world power now, and it would not do to have their imaginations or ability to adapt being constrained. And if all went well with the dragon-prince, then Japan would be moving even further into the spotlight.  
  
If the class had been silent before, they might as well have been turned to stone at this point.  
  
"Our thanks for undertaking this mission for us, prince-san." A senior member of the Diet agreed with a bow. He was rather enjoying the way everyone's eyes had bugged out. There was something to be said for the occasional bit of mischief, it seemed.  
  
Akane's eyes had locked on to her "not my boyfriend" and she mouthed the word for "prince" without saying anything.  
  
Even long after the visitors had left, the silence remained. It was as if everyone was frightened now of the possibilities that had just been dropped into everyone's laps.  
  
Even the teacher had trouble focussing on the current lessons.   
  
When school finally ended, the sense of relief was nigh overwhelming. Except for one person in the senior class.  
  
-------  
  
Nabiki felt like someone awaiting execution. No, someone marching to her execution.  
  
Class had ended, and now she was facing the dread moment. Going up to the top of the roof where she'd likely be eaten.  
  
She didn't like to admit that she *could* be hurt, but that *had* hurt. She hadn't known that her reputation was sufficient that the Americajin with his faulty Japanese would have known of some of the things she'd done. And now *everyone* would know some of the things she'd done. And when word of it reached the *real* Yakuza...  
  
Being eaten didn't sound half so bad.  
  
Nabiki swallowed and opened the roof access door, ready for her fate.  
  
Only there didn't appear to be anyone there. Nabiki looked around nervously for any sign of dragons, foreign princes (THAT at least hadn't been a surprise, it was perfectly in genre(1) for the timetravelling alien hero to turn out to be a prince), or Monsters From Beyond. Nothing.  
  
The only thing that looked out of place was a circle of brighter sunlight without anything noticeable about the area to indicate *why* it was so bright there.  
  
Gulping nervously and straightening her uniform, Nabiki reached out to touch the area of brightness. When nothing happened, she stepped fully into it.  
  
At which point the roof access door closed itself. There was nobody on the roof anymore anyway.  
  
-------  
  
An interesting day, you could certainly say that without any hint of overstatement. The rest of the students seemed to be giving him a VERY wide berth. Even more than usual.  
  
The Emperor and his group had been convinced that he was actually a prince. Something like Tenchi would be in a "Tenchi Muyo" universe no doubt. The funny thing was that he had no way to prove or disprove the allegation himself. For all Greylle knew they were correct.  
  
Greylle was bemused until he felt a wash of magic from the rooftop of the school then another from nearby. VERY different signatures.  
  
In a typical AD&D setting, magic could only be detected via a spell such as "Detect Magic". In the Aramar setting, magic was everywhere, but those sensitive to it (mages, clerics, and creatures of magic for example) could tell magical signatures were present when they were active. To narrow it down or tell what *kind* of magic it was, you needed to either be a creature of magic, a powerful wizard, or have a spell handy to read the lines and hue woven into the magic.  
  
It wasn't as obvious as if he'd been in dragonform, but he could *feel* something about the two emanations.  
  
"Rrrraaaaghhhhhh!"  
  
People boggled. Some fled. Yuka swore. Hiroshi screamed. Sayuri clutched Daisuke. Daisuke fainted. Sayuri saw all the nosebleed decorating the front of her schooldress and dropped Daisuke to the pavement.  
  
Greylle stared.  
  
Ranma popped his knuckles. "All right, something to *do*!"  
  
Akane stopped trying to approach Greylle and try to find out what was going on and merely stared.  
  
Nine feet tall, really powerful build, long face, antlers.  
  
"A moose minotaur?" Greylle blinked. He hadn't seen one of *those* before. "Ranma! Akane! It duty martial artists stop monsters, yes?"  
  
"Yeah, but what that has to do with a sportsjock or that uncute tomboy is something I'd like to know," quipped Ranma.  
  
Akane blinked again. Ranma had done nothing but make fun of her martial arts skills. Well, she'd show him NOW! With that thought, Akane ran forward while chambering one fist.  
  
Greylle watched Ranma leap to a wall, then kick off and do what would have been a wonderful flying snap kick to the monster's head.  
  
"Antler Toss!" The moose had other ideas. And apparently martial arts special attacks.  
  
Ranma grabbed, and so didn't become immediately airborne. Just stunned and holding onto one of the antlers.  
  
Akane ran forward and punched out at a knee joint. *WHAM!* Akane became an airborne projectile. *SMASH!* Make that briefly an airborne projectile.  
  
However, that *had* been enough time to throw together a spell. If this was actually a magical construct, physical attacks wouldn't do much (as had more than amply demonstrated to Greylle's satisfaction when he'd tried to shoot youma in his first Labor) direct damage. In some worlds, magic was needed to fight magic.  
  
"Holy flame i implore,  
Smite the evil on this shore!  
Flame Strike!"  
  
The column of flame completely engulfed the moose. Unfortunately Ranma was still clinging to it though he yelped and leapt away immediately. The side effect, which turned the school gates white with frost, didn't actually change anything else.  
  
The singed moose had decided (big surprise) that the blond guy was the biggest threat.   
  
Greylle dodged the first punch, only to get set up for a followup that threw him through a wall.  
  
Ranma was getting upset. First these girls had dismissed him as second rate, now the damn *monster* was ignoring him as if he just didn't count. This was only his second day in Nerima and he was already tired of it. (Though he *did* want to learn that Americajin's special manuever!)  
  
Water began spraying out of the hole in the second floor, sufficient indication that water pipes had been busted. The usual attraction of water to Jusenkyo victims occurred.  
  
"Why did it HAVE to be water?" Ranma spat some of the offending fluid out of her mouth. "That's it."  
  
"Flaming Fastball!" Greylle had remembered. Ranma universe = special attacks.  
  
"That's it. I have GOT to learn this guy's special manuevers." Ranma leapt up to land on the creature's shoulders then start hammering it in the head.  
  
Greylle leapt down then produced his baseball bat. He hadn't had much time, but had determined that the bat he'd been given had some qualities in common with Ryouga's umbrella. Very heavy, almost indestructible, and difficult to ignore.  
  
*WHAM!* Greylle briefly became airborne before coming down again. THAT had hurt. Also seperated him from his bat, not that there was much chance of it being stolen. It *looked* like a baseball bat, except that it weighed 380 pounds.  
  
"Airen! AIYAAA!"  
  
"Great, the whole floor show's here," grumbled Ranma as she held on while the moose tried to dislodge him. Fortunately, its muscles were so bulky that it couldn't get much flexibility.  
  
"Bullwinkle go on steroids?" Shampoo summed up after a few moments of scrutinizing the youma.  
  
"WHAT THE?!" Akane was lifting the baseball bat and turning red. "Ack! What's this thing (huff) made of (ung) anyway!" THUD!  
  
"Wood," answered Greylle, hefting it with one hand. Then considered that maybe he could use this opportunity to get Ranma and Akane on a less confrontational basis early in the program. The problem was HOW. (Another problem was that he found the combination distasteful anyway.)  
  
Shampoo started using her bonbori on the moose's tailbone. "Shampoo always have to deal with one annoying moose or another. This get very tiresome!"  
  
Unable to come up with a means at the moment for getting the two closer and less prone to cutting into each other (and surprised at Shampoo's presence), Greylle decided to heck with it all. Time to just cut loose. "Akane try to distract it."  
  
"Huh?!" Akane looked at the big monster and back at the gaijin. HOW was she supposed to distract it?  
  
"I've got a finishing move to use on it, but it takes some time to build it up," Greylle explained.  
  
The youngest Tendo nodded at that. Part of some tactic, she could deal with that. She ran past it. "Yo, monster, over this way."  
  
The moose didn't like this. Not only was someone beating on it from behind, it still hadn't gotten that annoying flea off its neck, and now someone apparently had decided it was idiot enough to ignore that there was a spellcaster over there!   
  
"Power of magic, power of light,  
Gather ye here, my foe to smite,  
The evil here to - oh heck"  
*WHAM!*  
  
Greylle went through one of the school's outer walls, carried in a bull rush.  
  
The moose finally got Ranma-chan off its neck, and swung her like a club into Shampoo. "Finally. Now I can get rid of the damn mage."  
  
"I don't think so, Skippy."  
  
The moose-youma blinked. There was a blonde girl with these ridiculously long ponytails standing in the street before him.  
  
A girl with short blue hair leapt down from a rooftop. "Sailor Moon. Aim for the center of the chest."  
  
"Sailor Moon?" Akane said, looking on. Okay, the pigtails fit, but this girl was wearing a Furinkan High School uniform!  
  
"Flying Piledriver!" *THWAM!* "Mongolian Elbow Slam!" *WHAM!* "Bulgarian Headlock!" *CRUNCH!*  
  
And Akane was pretty sure that Sailor Moon had *never* used moves from Pro Wrestling All-Stars. "Kickin' Kyoko From Kyoto"'s moves too, not that Akane ever watched the program.  
  
"Diving Swallow Knee Strike!" *WHACKUM!*  
  
Okayyyy. Akane recognized *that* particular manuever was one of the signature moves of "Devil May Karen." Not that she ever watched Women's Wrestling.  
  
The moose dropped, looking *very* surprised before turning to dust.  
  
"Uhm, what am I supposed to do now, Sailor Mercury?"  
  
"Pose and give a speech," advised the girl with short blue-tinted hair.  
  
"Oh," the blonde ponytailed girl considered then gave a wrestling pose. "I came. I saw. I kicked its ass!"  
  
"Good enough," advised the other. "Now we leave."  
  
Akane walked up, noticing the groaning Greylle and moaning Ranma-chan. She knew she'd seen that girl with the blue hair before, but where?  
  
---------  
  
Nabiki had been very courageous, samurai ancestry coming to the fore, when *physical* attacks and threats were not something she was particularly comfortable in facing.  
  
Though she had *not* anticipated appearing in what was apparently a very busy office setting, it still was big business enough to catch her interest and set her at ease somewhat.  
  
The nature of the office workers, however, were not so relaxing. A very pale woman stepped by her, and the air felt chilled as she passed. Over there was a three eyed tiger-skin wearing oni who was apparently talking on the phone with a distributor? Something that could only be a kappa, eating a cucumber sandwich and checking his e-mail?!  
  
"Na... Tendo-san, if you will follow me?"  
  
Nabiki frowned and turned. The woman looked familiar. VERY familiar. Though she was dressed in the armor of some ancient samurai, and had what looked like a very well used naginata, though there was some leather sheath covering the polearm's blade.  
  
"Tendo-san?" The woman smirked as if at some inner joke. "Amaterasu-sama wishes to speak with you."  
  
The office wasn't that cold, though Nabiki's blood had just frozen. She was small potatoes, the Oyabun of Furinkan Senior High School if that. Today she'd come under the scrutiny of the higher ups in government, and apparently beyond. Way way way beyond.  
  
Nabiki considered running, the problem was where would she run? She considered trying to BS her way through it all. And if she failed? That would be bad. Nabiki finally thought of one course of action she could take that did not end in disaster.  
  
"Grunch, Miss Tendo has fainted. Can you carry her to Her Lordship's office?"  
  
--------  
  
"MOTHER!" Nabiki awoke and was on her feet in short order. That oddly familiar face had suddenly clicked in her memory.  
  
"She's not here right now, child." The woman behind the desk had a Presence but her clothing was actually fairly "California".   
  
"Uhm," began Nabiki, tallying up details. The room was built to resemble some ancient shogun's war-room, yet there were holographic displays floating in the air. "Errr."  
  
"What you see around you is merely your mind trying to relate something that your senses are having trouble interpreting. Now, can we talk about something important?" The woman leaned forward over her desk.  
  
"Well, I guess," said Nabiki, doing her level best to act cool and collected. She could still regain control of the situation. "Providing you can make it worth my while. My time is very valuable you know."  
  
"Yes, I know. Racketeering and blackmail mainly." The woman looked exasperated. "You know, I was considering giving you over to the other side."  
  
"Oh, do they pay more?" Nabiki was getting into this, it was a familiar role.  
  
The woman held up a hand. Nabiki vanished.   
  
"It's a pity such extreme measures are needed for her to take this seriously," said a voice from the shadows.  
  
"Yes, it is. Remember that story of Jack's on how you get the attention of an Army mule?" She checked her watch, then raised her hand again. Nabiki reappeared. "Now, Tendo-san, if you would take this meeting seriously?"  
  
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" Nabiki was a little upset. Most of her clothes had been ripped away (she still had one shoe, a sock, and her sleeves) a large number of cuts and varied wounds showed on her skin, and unknown fluids dribbling from her skin to the soft carpeting below. Some of those fluids resembled salsa.  
  
"You just answered your own question, Tendo-san. Hell. The exact opposite of a nice place. The equivelant of a suburb. One could say that it is the absence of niceness, since concern for the feelings of others tends to keep the numbers of inductees lower than what you'd expect. Even in a modern society. Though it is much worse in the major population centers." The woman made another gesture and the wounds were cleaned and unknown fluids missing. "This is how you do business, Tendo-san, beware that others do not respond in kind. Intimidation, threats, blackmail, abuse of power, is it not? I could have left you there if I thought you were irredeemable."  
  
Nabiki still covered herself as she sank into the chair, shaking. "That was..."  
  
"Now, Miss Tendo, do you want to make a decision that will influence the rest of your life?"  
  
Nabiki turned and stared. There was a duplicate of the first woman, except this one was wearing 15th century clothing more appropriate for a male samurai, just modified for the different frame.  
  
"I am Amaterasu Omikami," said the samurai. "So is my Fragment there."  
  
The Californian nodded. "I am also Amaterasu. Well, part of me anyway. I will be showing up every so often, mainly to make cryptic comments and otherwise fill the role of Sailor Pluto while Greylle is mucking around over there."  
  
The samurai nodded. "The Gates Of Time need a guardian. That world could use a few protectors. Which is where you come in, Tendo-san."  
  
"Me?" Nabiki watched the Californian come out from behind the desk and materialize some clothing which the mercenary Tendo gratefully took.  
  
"Look at it as a ledger, Tendo-san," said the blue-jeans wearer. "Positive here, negative there. You have a chance at putting some large positives on your account."  
  
"Are you really that happy with your current life?" The samurai looked her over.  
  
"So I'm in the Red, am I?" Nabiki decided she could relate to it if it was on a monetary basis. What strange clothing this was. Padded cloth and leather armor? "What do I need to cancel my debt?"  
  
"Kiss Greylle," answered Californian.  
  
"WHAT?!"  
  
"I'd suggest seducing him, but I don't think you could manage it."  
  
"WHAT?!"  
  
Amaterasu considered how to explain that the current form Greylle was wearing had been designed by Urd. Urd had apparently been in a very naughty mood. "Greylle has some 'talents' that he himself does not know about yet." Boy was *that* an understatement. Urd had been creative.  
  
"..." Nabiki began to sulk. Everybody chased Akane or loved Kasumi. Here she was being told that she wasn't up to the task of seducing a guy. Just great.  
  
"You couldn't do it, because you'd have to gain his trust first. And he knows you too well."  
  
Nabiki startled at that. She was being read that easily?!  
  
The samurai took the vacated seat behind the desk and started putting some cards out on the table. "Your choices are: go back with your memories of this meeting purged and you can reclaim your life as if nothing had happened; go through boot camp with the Valkyries - I understand your mother wouldn't mind putting you through your paces. She is *very* disappointed in you, Nabiki. Go back with your memories dulled to dream level, and eventually become one of the Sabre Team of new heroes running about. Get sent back where you'll be in 'Magical Princess' training as a member of a new Sailor Team, though the dress code is a bit tight. Or..."  
  
A look of determination fitted into place on Nabiki's face. "Well, then, I choose..."  
  
--------  
  
Akane was deep in thought, trying to make sense of all the things she'd seen. As it was Akane (a typical Nerima resident in some respects) she already had her mind made up and was trying to work the various details into that framework.  
  
Ranma didn't notice, still grumbling. Now everyone knew her secret. And she'd done pretty poorly against the moose. Obviously needed more speed training, plus maybe some weapon training. Fists and kicks just hadn't had sufficient penetration. The only consolation had been that Mr Hotshot Jock hadn't done well either.  
  
Akane suddenly realized where she'd seen the face of that one girl. That robot that had been in a dream in Greylle-san's apartment! So that meant that the boy had a connection to the Sailor Senshi and had built a robot double (just like in that foreign comic "Superman")! No wonder he had asked Nabiki for information on them! Prince was no doubt some call sign or codeword and he was a go-between for the "champions of love and justice" who had vanished last year. Akane grinned. Maybe she could get Sailor Mars' autograph!  
  
Ranma catalogued the special techniques she'd seen the guy pull out, plus the damage he'd taken and shaken off. It was enough to revise her initial opinion of this fellow. He didn't move or project himself like a serious martial artist, so it was probably an act to get people to underestimate him in a real fight. There had been that column of flame thing, and then he threw a baseball so quickly that it had almost looked like it had caught fire. As the guy used something called "Baseball Martial Arts" - Ranma expected that bat of his got a lot of use. Probably adapted escrima or kenjutsu techniques. Of course, the weakness of a weapons based system is that their skill level went down a lot if you seperated them from their tools.  
  
Akane thought that Greylle-san being gone a month from Furinkan should allow her to slide out of this engagement with the baka transvestite, then she could try to get Doctor Tofu to notice her again, and when "Mr Baseball" returned he could introduce her to the Senshi. Hold the phone! Was he interested in her because he was going to recruit her for the Sailor Team! She'd hate to wear a short skirt, but then it was for the honor of her Art AND to save innocent lives! Hmmm.  
  
Ranma decided that she HAD to challenge this guy to a fight. Not just to prove that she WAS better, but because she had to see what other special manuevers this guy had that could be added to her own portfolio. You never knew when surprising some opponent with some weird attack might pull your bacon out of the fire.  
  
It was odd how Ranma and Akane were walking within five feet of each other, but they were currently worlds apart.  
  
---------  
  
Greylle was a little upset. On the one hand, he'd been *badly* overmatched by the moose-youma. He could have taken it, IF he'd reverted to dragonform, but the civilian casualties and damage would have escalated sharply. It had ignored everyone not attacking it but him, so he'd been reluctant to strike to that extent.  
  
And gotten his head practically handed to him. So, on the one foreclaw, he owed his two marionettes.  
  
On the other, they'd placed themselves in danger and more than from just the moose-youma. Neither of them had any extensive testing, they were still running on internal *batteries* for crying out loud.   
  
As for the moose-youma, they had been severely overmatched. Usagi had roughly a 35 Strength with current materials, meaning she could lift around 3 tons. Ami's strength was much less, she hadn't been designed as a frontline combat unit. Roughly a 20 strength, about the level of Akane without the rage-adrenal increase.   
  
So far that was it, he'd not finished the various "extras" he was trying to build into them. Though maybe he'd be able to set up a nanotank now.  
  
The thought of all this prince thing was cool, but the thought of a month working on these projects and being away from Akane was WONDERFUL! While he was gone, Akane would forget all about him, then she could fixate on Ranma or Ryouga or ANYONE! Heck, this could even end up like RN-101271 where Akane ended up with Shampoo (or at least chasing Shampoo around proclaiming her love after Shampoo used the wrong shampoo on Akane) and it would be a relief.   
  
(Actually, he'd long felt that RN-101271 was more amusing than the typical mainline. What with Akane chasing after Shampoo, Shampoo chasing after Ranma, Mousse trying to avenge himself against Ranma (for leading Shampoo on) AND Akane (for trying to do THAT with Shampoo, a bottle of baby oil, and a rubber duck) while Kodachi chased after Mousse (he'd been in the Saotome backyard one fateful night) and Ranma often just wondering what the blazes was going on. Greylle often found himself wanting to head back to Mimir's Well just to watch that one scene with Akane chasing around Shampoo trying to give "Kiss Of Marriage" to the Amazon while Mousse was trying wildly to find his glasses since this had all started with Akane surprising Shampoo as the latter tried to take a bath. About the time that Soun fainted with a nosebleed, the insanity had escalated to such levels that Nabiki was packing her bags to head off for college a year early.)  
  
Back to the two marionettes. They'd pulled him out of the fire, but he needed to upgrade their systems severely if there were going to be youma attacks.  
  
-------  
  
Ami blinked. Usagi blinked.  
  
"Stay tuned for more.... 'Whirlwind Of Love'."  
  
They were imprinting with as much information about the human condition as they could. Early morning had seen the 'Best Moments Of Women's Wrestling', two cooking shows, a rerun of 'Takahashi's Castle' (a gameshow), and four Japanese Soap Operas.  
  
There was a lot of data there. Both Ami and Usagi found the male+female social customs interesting on a personal level.  
  
Ami finished putting together the descrambler/receiver array while the commercials went on. "Here we go."  
  
"What's that do?" Usagi looked at the odd gadget.  
  
"Three hundred channels. Now let's see.... Oh my! What are they doing?!" Ami stopped surfing as she saw something that made no sense.  
  
"Is this a program on cannibilism?" Usagi cocked her head as she scanned. "No, she doesn't appear to be biting off anything, and the male appears to be enjoying it."  
  
"How odd," said Ami, sitting down so she could figure this out. Human behavioral patterns were so odd and complex.  
  
TV: "Soup-chan!" "Noodle-sama!"  
  
"What do you suppose the significance of their actions are?" Usagi puzzled over this. "Some sort of greeting ritual or exercise technique?"  
  
"They do appear to be generating heat, and it would likely be a good cardiovascular technique." Ami puzzled over the reactions of the male and the female, as well as their actions. "I think I understand. This is a 'mating'."  
  
"Like in this book?" Usagi held up the book of "Elven Mating Customs" she'd found in the carrisack. "What is the purpose of 'mating' anyway? Is it done solely for exercise?"  
  
"From what data I'm able to access, it appears that there are several byproducts of mating. One of which is the potential development of other units." Ami accessed a file and shuddered. How terribly messy. "We are not currently equipped for such duties."  
  
Usagi nodded, her gaze never waivering from the television. "I recall. Soft tissues will require an upgrade, and these appear to be rather complicated. Since this does seem to be a fundamental part of human existence, we should consider making these upgrades soon."  
  
"Agreed," agreed Ami, accessing the appropriate files.   
  
---------  
  
Greylle looked up at the apartment building, rising six floors and no elevators, a tribute to man's desire to make a quick buck and not consider certain problems. Such as that nobody even in a crowded place like Tokyo wanted to live in most of the apartments. Who the heck wanted to carry groceries up to the sixth floor with steep stairs all the way?  
  
Yet, for whatever reason, he could see that there were indeed people up there. Or at least some windows were lit. It was only 8pm, and the vast majority of sararimen were still at work. Typical Japanese workday: 6am to 9pm. If an earlier start wasn't mandated.   
  
There were some things that he didn't envy the Japanese. Their jobs and living space being among the most prominent. As for driving in Tokyo: not even on a Bet.   
  
All of which suddenly struck Grey in the form of a single realization. This *was* home now. He wouldn't be leaving this reality.  
  
Currently he was several people, those who had *not* for whatever reason seperated out when he had failed the Fourth Labor. The problem was that he didn't remember any of them that well, and each of them had grown up in very different environments. Even simple things as goals and personal tastes had been different.  
  
First, he was the fellow originally known as Gregg - a weirdness magnet who'd always tried to do the right thing but hadn't exactly been very successful. His tastes had been eclectic and his environment mostly late 20th Century America, though some odd subcultures had been involved. In this situation, he'd have likely taken a low profile approach.  
  
Souls not being bounded by time or space, nor necessarily having a gender themselves, his Second remaining Aspect was that of Noa - a pokemon trainer who'd dreamed of becoming a big rock musician until her life and career was cut short by Butch & Cassidy. If it were Noa instead of Greylle here, she would have immediately done her considerable best to become an idol singer and from there tried to parlay that into pop music.  
  
Also of the female variety had been Artemis Gray, B-Wing pilot for the Rebellion who'd died in the Battle Of Endor. Artemis had been extremely gung ho, an enthusiastic warrior fighting for a cause she had believed in, whose battle-scarred face and bionic eye had convinced her that nobody cared about her as an individual. Her spartan and utilitarian tastes contrasted almost 180 degrees from Noa's prediliction for cute. In this sort of situation, Artemis would have likely joined the Japanese Self Defense Force in order to become a pilot instead.  
  
Mamoru Tengoku, repairman and experimenter of the female shaped androids known as marionettes, was the fourth Aspect to remain. HIS memories were quite a lot clearer than those of the prior three. As Gennai's student, then Lorelei's pupil later on, he'd gone from being a street survivor to having access to the Shogun's palace. Then been pulled out of that timeline before he could really accomplish much. Actually, if Mamoru had been in this situation, he'd likely have done pretty much what he was currently doing.  
  
Finally there had been more fragmented identities. He'd grown up as "Orion", a replacement Ranma Saotome that had actually been a transformed dragon who had fled Genma Saotome in the shape of a cat only to run into a girl named Minako Aino. He'd spent years growing up as her friend, a talking cat, then rediscovered his ability to shift into human shortly after Minako met some of her new teenage friends. He'd also been another Ranma, one who had grown up with his childhood friend Ukyo and a pyrolion named Akane. Not to mention a buddy named Makoto and a less rough-and-tumble playmate named Rei. He'd been the artificially born son of Gendo and Yui Ikari, crafted from genes of a dozen different sources including Adam. THAT version of himself had been the childhood friend and lover of the cram school ace and likewise genetically engineered "Scout Pilot" Ami Mizuno.  
  
While trudging up the stairs, Greylle wondered what it would have been like if he'd lived one of those other lives to its destiny. Noa and Artemis had lived their lives and died in violent circumstance - cut short by someone else. Would Noa have realized her dream of being a pop singer? Would Artemis have eventually realized that it wasn't the scars on her face, but the walls she erected around herself that kept people at bay? Would Mamoru have found contentment and happiness with his Otome Kairo installed marionettes Apple, Grape, Honey, and Blueberry? Would Orion have eventually settled down with Minako? Would that Ranma have been content with the second place position as Heir of the Saotome School, and would Ukyo have rescued him from that marriage to the Tendo version of Akane? Would Grey Ikari have continued as the best friend and boyfriend to Ami even through the youma attacks and Machiavellian intrigues of Tokyo-3?  
  
Finally, he was Grey, sometimes known as Greylle. Trained under Hephaestus as a Techwizard and mechanic. In a different Star Wars universe than that of Artemis, he'd operated a repairship from the time of the Battle Of Yavin to a few years later. He'd visited dozens of universes, helping out where he could. Sometimes he'd been successful, sometimes less so. He'd fought at the side of Senshi, freedom fighters, and soldiers of fortune. He'd piloted a Sopwith Camel, a B-17 Bomber, an A-10 "Warthog", and a variety of starships and gravitic vehicles. He'd fought with fists, stones, swords, manriki-gusari, revolvers, lasers, particle beam weapons, and pokemon.  
  
Greylle came to a conclusion. As soon as Akane dumped him (inevitable though he wasn't above hastening it), he'd do some of that again. From what he'd heard from the Japanese government they'd be amenable as long as they could send along an observer or two. Go out and explore the universe, see what was out there. He could build enough marionettes to crew a ship and take care of the less difficult tasks. Help out where he could, and let enough info come back to Earth that it could improve lives all over. Like in that Star Trek universe he'd briefly been in, there were plants that could grow in the Sahara that could eventually form the basis of a new ecosystem that would feed millions. He'd have to be careful as it could all backfire, but if he kept the changes as small steps it might work out.  
  
Greylle stopped with his hand on the doorknob. Premonition of doom. Hmmm.  
  
The problem was that if he didn't go in there now, where *would* he go? The Tendo Dojo? No way in heck! Camp out? No doubt quieter but still unsatisfactory. Gritting his teeth, Greylle just decided to face it. Whatever the marionettes were planning couldn't be *that* bad.  
  
Greylle opened the door, stared for a moment, then closed it behind him.   
  
"Would someone mind telling me WHAT you two are doing? Ami, put your skin back on, that's very disturbing. HEY! HEY! What are you doing?!"  
  
Greylle opened the door, stepped out, closed the door, went to the landing at the end of the hall. Then jumped off and shifted on the way down. Yes, it panicked the hell out of the neighbors, but he was getting out of there NOW!  
  
*sniff* *sniff* hmmm. that smelled pretty good. Maybe a brief snack. He'd have to go back to the apartment sometime but a meal might give the two a chance to realize THAT had not been appropriate behavior.   
  
-------  
  
Hotaru blinked and looked around. "Papa said..."  
  
"Yes, Hotaru, I'm here to train you as a miko - a shrine priestess." The woman gestured at the shrine around them. "This could be fun, right?"  
  
"This place wasn't here yesterday," said Hotaru. "This was an abandoned warehouse. I remember the broken windows and there was that rusty metal sheeting hanging from nails..."  
  
"Gripe, quibble, complain, is this *really* how you want to spend your time as my apprentice?"  
  
Hotaru considered, then shook her head. She still studied the area. Trees that looked hundreds of years old thrusting up from a natural landscape. No sign of aged concrete, metal sheets, or broken windows. "Did you do this?"  
  
Amaterasu nodded. "The shrine is actually a small but tasteful building in the center, surrounded by a small pond that I've stocked with koi. We'll be staying there."  
  
The little girl looked around. Somehow the idea that people considered her a monster for healing people seemed even more clueless than usual. "This is... impressive."  
  
"Perhaps. Kind of homey." Amaterasu shook her head. "Look, it's still the set up. I can do minor stuff like this without screwing things up too much."  
  
"Minor?" Hotaru looked at the red torii arches that led to a brick path. Both looked as if they'd been here a lot longer than one day. "This is minor?"  
  
Amaterasu ran her fingers through her hair, frowning slightly. "Yeah. MAJOR would have drawn too much attention to the place."  
  
"So, about this fiancee..."  
  
"Oh you'll like him," Amaterasu assured the girl. "Nice boy. If a bit defeatist at times. He's older than you, but after a decade or so you'll catch up."  
  
"Decade?"  
  
The Japanese sun goddess nodded. "Oh yes. You're Sailor Saturn, you see. Or will be. The nobility of the Silver Millenium have lifespans of about 10,000 years. He's a dragon, Aramarian silver to be exact, so he's got a similar lifespan."  
  
"A dragon?!" Hotaru made a face. "Like Gojira?"  
  
"He can take human form, Hotaru-chan." Amaterasu shrugged and looked slightly embarassed. "Urd designed his new human form. She went a little... overboard in some respects. Still it *should* make for a good match with you. You'll understand more when you're older."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Never mind Hotaru-chan." Amaterasu led the way to the shrine bridge. "Oh, and I think the first thing we should do is start you on increasing the power of your healing abilities."  
  
"Uhm, how do I do that?"  
  
"Well, this is a 'magical girl' universe, so to do it efficiently you either need to transform to a 'super' identity or have a magical focus or both." Hotaru's teacher pondered briefly. "I wonder if Greylle's figured that out yet? Anyway, what we need is a healing focus."  
  
"But I'm not Sailor Saturn... I'm not Sailor Anyone!"  
  
Rolling her eyes, the sun goddess made a gesture. "Oh and for the record, Metal'la was *not* Sailor Sun. There was *no* Sailor Earth. There was no Sailor Vulcan, Sailor Oort Cloud, Sailor Vespa, or Sailor Nemesis. None. However, in the Silver Millenium, there wasn't a Sailor Moon either so there's a precedent for adding Senshi. You, however, are Sailor Saturn - the Senshi of Destruction and Death."  
  
"Do I have to be?" Sailor Saturn looked down at her uniform and wondered why she couldn't have a longer skirt at least.  
  
Amaterasu made a waving gesture. "Actually, no. But we can talk about that after we've gotten most of your training done. I... what the blazes is he doing?"  
  
Saturn looked overhead as something big and glittery passed overhead. "Is that him? He's very pretty."  
  
"Yes. Oh well, it's a mess of his own making this time. Let *him* sort it out. Now, on to your training."  
  
---------   
  
The crowd around the okonomiyaki stand had melted away before Greylle realized "Gee, maybe i ought to get out of sight, change back, and THEN see if i can buy one."   
  
Having done so, he thought the cart had been abandoned until he saw movement from behind dumpster. "Speak English you do?" It seemed that being tired and trying to manipulate an often difficult to inscrutable language did not mix well.  
  
"I'm from Kansai, sugar. Of course I speak English." The "boy" straightened up, looking around as if just daring anyone to suggest that he'd actually been hiding.  
  
"UCCHAN?!"  
  
Eyes narrowed. "Who the heck are you? Ain't hardly anybody who calls me that. I'm Ukyo Kuonji."  
  
"Greylle Shard. How much on a shrimp okonomiyaki?"  
  
"850yen," responded Ukyo, immediately going into businesswoman mode. At Greylle's producing of the requisite coins, she immediately started producing it. "So how do y'all know me anyway?"  
  
Greylle wondered if he should. Oh heck, why not? "Well, just something i've heard of. Maybe you can tell me how accurate it all is. Seems this guy named Genma Saotome was bragging in a bar one night about how he'd made this incredible deal and pulled the wool over everyone's eyes- especially his own son's."  
  
Ukyo listened to a tale of how Genma had mislead his son into believing his fiancee was actually a boy, and then forced the two apart. Greylle continued to spin the tale, not really making any major changes in the story except for Genma bragging about it. It was the way he presented it that was different, making it sound like Ranma was an clueless little kid and his father a gluttonous louse who'd sell his son off whenever there was food involved.  
  
"Waitaminute, Ranma doesn't know?!" Ukyo served up the pancake-like item. "Are you sure about this?"  
  
"Well, i dunno. That's the way it was related to me, and i just met Ranma. He struck me as pretty clueless." Greylle found this kinda nice. He could talk in English without struggling over those damn particles or which verb-ending to use or whether you used this word with this other one. Though Ukyo's southern accent was thick enough to cut. Why Ukyo had a Southern accent when she switched to English was a mystery he decided not to pursue at this time.  
  
"How could he be *that* dumb?"  
  
"He was raised by Genma, wasn't he?" Greylle shrugged and decided to leave, it was close to 9pm now and he had his new job starting in the morning. "Besides, if he knew you were a girl (even with that crossdressing), how could he leave such a cute fiancee?"  
  
Ukyo watched the stranger leave, her emotions a tangled mess as she considered whether or not Ranma *intended* to leave her behind, and had one word rolling around in her consciousness. "C-c-c-cute?!"  
  
---------  
  
(1) - of course, Nabiki is thinking of an entirely different genre than pun-oriented martial arts with the occasional bit of angst.  
  
OK That's it for now with Retake. Hopefully i can get to "pokegirls" now for a little while. 


	7. Chapter 7: Touching Base

Retake chapter 7: Touching Base  
  
Disclaimer: an unintended fic, written to be humorous and entertain only.  
  
------------  
  
"Aw come on, one more time!"  
  
"No, Saotome-kun. I do not think that anything has changed to where the outcome would be affected."  
  
"Stop whining, Ranma, she's beat you 14 times already." Akane frowned a little, remembering that it had taken her only seven times to decide she just wasn't going to beat Usagi in armwrestling. Though as soon as she'd built her strength up some more!  
  
Usagi puzzled over this behavior. Perhaps it would be better to agree to the match and allow Saotome-kun to win?  
  
Rei and Makoto, this being their first day, puzzled over this development.   
  
"RANMA, PREPARE TO DIEEEE!"  
  
Eyes, both psuedo-organic and organic, flicked up to track a rapidly moving incoming body.  
  
Ranma leapt to the side. Usagi, Rei, Ami, and Makoto moved as one to different positions from where they could coordinate assaults if this proved to be a threat to themselves. Akane blinked for a moment and was then sent by a small explosion of newly created gravel to land on her posterior.  
  
"You haven't changed, Ranma! Still good at running away."  
  
Makoto brought her hand into connection with Ami's and established a datafeed for communication purposes. *This is neither in my engram downloads nor personal database. I have only been active for 25 hours, 14 minutes, 17 seconds. Explain?*  
  
Ami nodded. *The discovery of partial data collection from computer scans during the so-called Third Labor was fortuitous, unfortunately we still experience gaps. This is, however, why we are attending Furinkan and associating with humans. There is currently nothing in my database to explain this behavior. Estimate 97% chance of hostilities, extreme likelihood of physical conflict being used for resolution of same.*  
  
Makoto nodded fractionally herself. *Preparing battle analysis routines. Will add to own combat potential. Disengaging comlink.*  
  
"You?!" Ranma said, staring at the boy in the crater.  
  
"Someone ELSE you're engaged to, Ranma?" Akane picked herself up and dusted off the contact point.   
  
Ranma started puzzling over it. "Uh, yeah, sure, sure, he's..."  
  
"Don't strain your brain, Ranma," said Akane. ~Not like that would take effort.~  
  
Ami briefly wondered if Ranma had been brain damaged. Slurred speech + short term memory problems + limited attention span? The amount of violence endured by a martial artist indicated that there was a distinct possibility of repetitive concussion injuries, and the symptoms were in keeping with such a diagnosis. Treatment of such was possible, but she would need to confirm this initial analysis before suggesting it.  
  
"Just tell me one thing, Ranma. Why did you run out on our fight?"  
  
"Airen run out on more fights than with Shampoo? That very bad." Shampoo landed nearby from one of her roof-hops. "Shampoo have to break you of bad habits taught by ben dan father."  
  
"'ben dan?'" Akane asked.  
  
"Chinese for 'baka'," supplied Ami.  
  
"You got that right, sugar," Ukyo suggested. She wasn't sure of her own place in this whole mess. She understood that the girl with the purple hair was her rival for Ranma, sort of, but Shampoo herself was confused about some point of Chinese Amazon law regarding her relationship with Ranma much as Ukyo herself was, so nobody had gotten openly confrontational about it. Well, at least not much. Besides, if somebody wanted to rag on Genma Saotome - Ukyo was quite willing to agree with 'em. "He's a 'ben dan' influence on poor Ranma-honey if ever there was one."  
  
The crowd of regular students tried to listen to both Ranma's verbal sparring with Ryouga and the discussion with the various new girls vs Akane.  
  
Kuno, currently in Happy Valley Sanitarium, was currently on medication and not available for comment. Just in case the gentle reader was interested.  
  
"Very bad sense of direction," summed up Hiroshi upon hearing the details of the "missed" challenge fight.  
  
"Maybe sometime we all get together teach stupid monster not to go putting foreign objects in mouth?" Shampoo shuddered as she recollected one of the times she'd been halfway swallowed.  
  
"I'll go for that," agreed Nabiki. She wanted to make it absolutely clear that she was *not* a chew toy.  
  
"No matter what it takes, Ranma. I shall destroy your happiness!"  
  
"Good luck finding any 'happiness' for you to destroy," grumbled Ranma. "Man, this place is even worse than that reform school we attended together."  
  
Ryouga blinked. "It can't be THAT bad."  
  
"Wanna Bet?" Ranma shook his head.  
  
"Enough talk, Saotome! Prepare to die!"  
  
------------  
  
"And exactly how do you hope to justify these expenses? You may be Emperor, but don't forget that we have to maintain our budget and account to the public for everything. 220,000 yen and for what? A hidden elevator to some underground shelter?"  
  
Naruhito shrugged. "Honestly, it's my first time here, Sanada-san."  
  
The elevator doors dinged and opened.   
  
Sanada blinked. "How much did you spend on this? My office only found 220,000 yen in this 'Advanced Technological Research'."  
  
"That's it so far. Mainly we've been paying for the land for the access tunnels." Naruhito stepped out into the spartan white corridor that seemed to stretch off into the distance, lit by tiny squares near the floor. The ceiling was a full 12 feet up, and shaped like a dome. The floor made of the same fused white rock.  
  
A shape slowly moved forward, causing Sanada a brief moment of panic and an exclamation of interest from the Emperor. It was about five feet across and spider-shaped, a collection of struts and motors and boxes. "Good evening. Master is this way. One of you is designate: Emperor?"  
  
"That would be me," acknowledged Naruhito as he began following the device down the corridors. "Your voice is a little difficult to understand."  
  
"Am designate repair/construction. Speech centers not priority," replied the spider. "Reference Workspider 01 for individual reference."  
  
"I see," said the Emperor, fascinated and wondering if he could get one himself. "Did you build the corridor here?"  
  
"Affirmative," Workspider admitted with a trace of pride. "Master commended me on job well done."  
  
Sanada realized he was being left alone and hurried to reach the two. "This isn't a remote controlled device?!"  
  
A cluster of sensors turned towards the individual. "Negative. Self is entirely self-contained, though in constant communication with main computer system. Complex is now 35% operational."  
  
"What's down there?" Naruhito pointed to a side corridor.  
  
"Marionette Nanotanks. Currently artificial tissues and skin are being added to the frames for units designated 'Haruka' and 'Michiru'. 65% complete. Programming and engram development is at 97% and should be completed within 27 minutes 14 seconds."  
  
"And down THIS corridor?" In some ways the Emperor felt like a kid in a toy store. The agreement they'd come to with this Greylle person was that the other would allow use of some of this technology but actual commercial release was to be more regulated due to some factor called "technological shock" where the society wasn't even ready for the implications of a new development.  
  
"Bulk Fabrication. First release of new technology is to be a new battery prototype that is 150% more efficient than currently available. 250 units are ready for delivery."  
  
"This room?" Sanada pointed, a little shakily, at a closed door.  
  
"That room is for purging of organic wastes." Workspider seemed to hesitate briefly. "Computer informs self that common usage term is 'toilet'."  
  
Workspider came to the end of the main corridor and indicated a passage with one foreleg. "Master is 15.278 feet that way. This unit needs to finish recharging. Have a nice day."  
  
-------------  
  
There was the sound of breaking glass and falling pieces of brick.  
  
"Did you *mean* to throw him into the school?" Usagi asked, wondering about the protocols of these challenge duels.  
  
"Great going, Ranma!" Akane's voice was full of sarcasm.  
  
"Hey! It's not my fault!" Ranma looked around. "He's the one who started it!"  
  
"RANMA! WHERE ARE YOU, YOU COWARD?" (CRASH! SMASH!) (Tinkle)  
  
"See! He ain't hurt or nothin'!" Ranma pointed to the school. "Ryouga can take it!"  
  
(Crunch. Shatter. Groan.)  
  
"Sounds like we might miss school tomorrow," opined Hiroshi.  
  
"School called on account of lack of building? A distinct possibility," agreed Daisuke.  
  
(Groan. Crash. Shatter.) "SAOTOME! WHERE ARE YOU HIDING?"  
  
"I don't believe this," groaned Akane. "Ranma, can't you take your fights somewhere that doesn't have breakable things?"  
  
"Where would *that* be? I'll just go get him, be just a moment. He's got *no* sense of direction." Ranma ran into the school.  
  
"I've got a bad feeling about this," said Akane as she followed.  
  
"Then why is she going after him?" Usagi asked Ami.  
  
Ami shrugged. Humans. Who could figure them?  
  
--------  
  
"This looks like..." Sanada-san wasn't that familiar with anime, though he thought he'd seen this somewhere before.  
  
"It's just a high speed transport, maybe Mach 5 if everything goes well. VTOL configuration and a high speed config. Not terribly well armed or heavily armored, but it's not meant as a combat vehicle - just to get you in and out in a hurry."  
  
"I'm not familiar with the design," admitted Naruhito. "I was expecting the 'Arcadia' from 'Captain Harlock.'"  
  
"Much later. i haven't even started drawing up the plans yet. R2? Can you finish for me?"  
  
(Wooop-ding-ding-buzz.)  
  
"Marionette?" Naruhito asked.  
  
"Nah. Robot. Female androids are marionettes. Male androids are mannekin. Genderless without the fleshy bits: robots." Greylle yawned. "Sorry, i've been working almost nonstop since that morning."  
  
(Woopa-woopa-ding-ding-dong.)  
  
"i'll worry about that if i *do* put stairs in, R2." Greylle gave an apologetic look to his two visitors. "As it is..."  
  
"Warning," interrupted a female voice from midair. "Large explosion located on planetary surface."  
  
"Huh?" Greylle frowned. "Computer. Exact nature and location of explosion."  
  
"Location: Furinkan Senior High School. Origin of explosion coincides with tanks of natural gas used for supplying kitchen area and water heaters."  
  
"Excuse me, gentlemen. It appears that i need to make an appearance."  
  
---------  
  
Yuka and Sayuri stared. "You... saved us, but..."  
  
Makoto flinched and pulled a shard of wood out of her chest. "This is unpleasant."  
  
"You're... like Mighty Tetsuwan (Astro-boy)!" Yuka exclaimed, causing Sayuri to fall over.  
  
Makoto cocked her head slightly as she processed that. "Actually... there *are* parallels. Fascinating."  
  
Then a dragon did a flyby over the flaming area of the school.  
  
"Is that a dragon?" Sayuri said, matter of factly now that she was beyond being stunned.  
  
"Neat! Just like in 'Dragon Century'. That's an Ice Dragon. Isn't that neat, Sayuri!"  
  
"Yuka, the boys will think less of us if you go showing off that you're a closet otaku."  
  
Usagi touched Ami's hand to initiate a data transfer. *Otaku?*  
  
Ami responded along the same link. *Term not in my database. Seems relatively friendly and able to adapt to situations outside the typical paradigm.*  
  
Usagi nodded and broke the connection. The human designated Yuka appeared to a potentially useful contact.  
  
"It appears that Ryouga Hibiki survived," Ami said. "As well as Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo."  
  
"Could someone put out the fire in Akane's hair?!"  
  
(Shooosh!)  
  
"Could someone chip Akane out of the ice?!"  
  
"What about Ranma?"   
  
"Oh let him get himself out of it, he got himself into it!"  
  
"Has anyone seen Nabiki?"  
  
---------  
  
Greylle had flown back, then returned in human shape. Having to find out what the crap was going on. That Ryouga and Ranma's battle had gone through a set of walls, and that Ryouga had then thrown dozens of those bandanas.  
  
Right through a set of pipes that took gas to the kitchens, to the science rooms, and to the water heaters.  
  
"Nabiki... Nabiki..." Akane was digging through rubble with her hands.  
  
"Ryouga, you jerk!"  
  
"SHUT UP, RANMA!" Akane left the rubble to scream into Ranma's face. "THIS IS *YOUR* FAULT! It was *your* fight. *Your* rival. *You* that all the vengeance is about. *You* who fail to do anything about *your* problems!"  
  
Greylle looked about, then gestured to Ami. "Ami. I need you to scan for lifesigns."  
  
"Negative. There is no one alive remaining," Ami responded.  
  
"Pinpoint Nabiki's location then."  
  
Ami went through the rubble, then found the appropriate point.   
  
Yuka and Sayuri sidled closer, nervous as all get out, but aware that something was about to happen.   
  
Greylle dug the body out then set her out in the grass. "i'm probably going to regret this." He quickly began laying strips of paper out.  
  
"What are you doing? Are those ofuda (wards)?" Sayuri asked finally.  
  
"Yeah. Let's see. 'Raise Dead' is out, don't have enough intact of the body. Not high enough level for 'Resurrection' or 'Reincarnation' unless i had an artifact."  
  
Akane got closer herself, though after the first glance she refused to look again. "What are you doing?"  
  
"Bringing her back," said Greylle absently.   
  
"There's a martial arts technique for THAT?!" Ranma was intrigued to say the least.   
  
"Ranma, not everything in life is martial arts," said Greylle tiredly.  
  
Ranma blinked. "What else is there?"   
  
"Life, death, and magic," answered Greylle while Akane was ready to beat the snot out of her fiance. Though he was generally opposed to this sort of behavior between fated lovers, he was able to see her point in this instance.  
  
"RANMA YOU... 'bring her back'?!" Akane suddenly caught up with what had been said.  
  
"Yeah," Greylle turned to Ami. "i need the systems prepped. Need the spare nanotank brought online and ready. We'll stabilize what we can, cyborg systems until i can generate flesh replacements."  
  
"Uhm, excuse me?" Akane reached out and grabbed Greylle, shaking him briefly. "Did you say..."  
  
Greylle did *not* know Baseball Martial Arts. So far he'd been faking the whole thing, using draconic strength, speed, and durability, plus other talents such as trying to focus his flight ability on a baseball to produce a "double curve" pitch. He didn't know what side-effect this would have, but it was better than having his shirt ruined.  
  
"Anger turn against its source,  
tripled now by magic force,  
Rebuke."  
  
Akane staggered back, eyes widened and gasping. She finally sat down on a chunk of wall and stared.  
  
"I have *got* to learn this guy's special manuevers," mumbled Ranma.  
  
--------  
  
"So I'm dead?" Nabiki sulked for a moment, then got a very alarmed expression. "Waitaminute, that means... uh oh."  
  
"Daughter, I am very disappointed in you."  
  
"It's not my fault!"  
  
"Do you know what the odds are playing on you managing to land a kiss? 30:1. Seducing him? 200:1. Overcoming his image of you as a manipulative, self-serving, honorless, bottom-feeding, hurtful, money-grubbing, parasite? 500:1." Kimiko shook her head. "With odds like that, do you realize how much I could make?"  
  
"Urk!" Nabiki wasn't sure what hurt more. That her own mother was placing bets on her, or that she had such long odds against being able to overcome the Mercenary Ice Queen image. No, it hurt more that her own mother was viewing her as something less than her darling daughter. Considerably less. Could she help it if she liked money?  
  
Kimiko held her hands up and implored the heavens. "Goodness. The odds of you actually dragging him to the altar? 50,000:1 currently. The odds of AKANE managing it is considerably better. Kasumi has better odds than that."  
  
Nabiki gestured at the crowd of people. "But I'm dead. What can I do about it? I mean look at my body there. I was just trying to get a decent look at the fight so I could fix odds, and look what happened to me. Flash-fried, hit by shrapnel, and half a building fell on me. If they hadn't identified it as me, *I* couldn't have."  
  
"That's okay. As soon as he figures out the spell, he'll bring you back." Kimiko waved it off. "Providing the side effects aren't too bad. Pity he didn't stay a dragon, he could see you then. As it is, you'd have to be within six feet of him for him to sense your presence."  
  
"Dragon. HE'S a dragon?!" Nabiki pointed. "I thought he was an alien timetravelling prince here to keep the world from being destroyed!"  
  
"Well that too," Kimiko said, aware that she might be giving out details she'd be best holding off. "Hmmm. Maybe we ought to shift the odds some. In your favor for once."  
  
"How's that?" Nabiki went back to sulking. Despite being a disembodied spirit- it really turned her stomach to see her body like that.  
  
"You'll see."  
  
"Mother, you're scaring me."  
  
---------  
  
Greylle let out a deep breath, centering himself, and brought his hands up. This was far from ideal, but it was all he could think of. Besides *he* must be guilty of this, somehow, otherwise Ranma and Ryouga fighting wouldn't have gone this far.  
  
The ofuda flared to white radiance, forming a circle of light that surrounded the burned girl.  
  
The assembled audience still watched, most coming to the conclusion that the gaijin being able to do things like this was why all those important visitors had come to see him.  
  
"Torn early from this life,  
Unfair thy fate,  
Nabiki Tendo return to strife,  
until at least appointed date,  
Raise Dead!"  
  
The corpse spasmed.  
  
"Usagi, carry her. Makoto, that spell is fairly draining, if you can help me get to the lab..."  
  
--------  
  
"Waitaminute, *that* is not exactly alive!" Nabiki pointed. "And I'm still here!"  
  
"Were you paying attention?"  
  
"Yes, yes, YES! Three parts yerba root added to the mix on the night of a full moon, bring to a boil, and then strain through a wire mesh." Nabiki threw her spectral hands up in frustration.  
  
"Then add it to a beverage. If you drink the stuff without mixing it, it tastes like crap. Or so I'm told, I've never tried it myself." The girl with the petite figure lectured her new student. "Oh, and Urd says not to use a carbonated beverage. Something about weird side effects."  
  
"Fine, fine. I don't know where I'd get half the ingredients." Nabiki kept sneaking looks at where her body was being carried off. Though the way Ranma seemed torn between finding out what was wrong with Akane and following those girls carrying off her body was heartening. "What the heck does it do anyway?"  
  
"Hmmm. Oh just a generic attractiveness potion." The girl waved it off. "Typical thing, try to get someone to take it unwillingly and you have ridiculous coincidences screwing it up."  
  
"Then what good is it?" Nabiki kept glancing away. "My body was awfully darn messed up."  
  
"Don't worry, don't worry. By the time you've rejoined that form, you'll have gotten some first rate instruction in magic." The woman shrugged. "I heard your mother tried to get you some combat training and they basically chewed you up and spit you out."  
  
"Yeah. So what do *you* get out of it? You don't strike me as being that generous." Nabiki could sense a fellow mercenary in the redhead.  
  
"I get the formula for a potion that increases my breast size!" Lina chirped before going into an insane laugh.  
  
Nabiki frowned. Not that *she* needed it, but maybe she could get the recipe for that potion. It could have major possibilities.  
  
-------  
  
"What do you mean she's dead?!" Soun was going higher and higher into shock.  
  
Ranma put a badly burned right arm on the table.  
  
"Oh my," said Kasumi. Then she decided that this wasn't sufficient and fainted.  
  
Soun had done something similar on the other side of the table.  
  
"Shut up, Ranma, Greylle-sama said he'd bring her back. So far *he* hasn't lied or tried to pull one over on me." Akane grumbled. Why did everyone insist that *she* had to marry this boy?  
  
Soun was beginning to recover when he heard the 'sama' added to the gaijin's name. For *Akane* to use that sort of honorific with a boy her own age was nearly impossible. Then the rest of the statement registered. No, it was too much to hope for. Clearly his little girl was dead.  
  
Ranma grumbled. He *had* to learn those special techniques!  
  
Soun's head came up, and he was going beyond demonhead. His little girl had died because of Saotome's fight?! "Sa-o-to-ME!"  
  
--------  
  
Yuka and Sayuri were typical high school girls, and Akane's friends. Well, at least Sayuri was. Yuka was a closet otaku who'd given up on "all that stuff" because she had reached an age where you weren't supposed to pay that much attention to anime or that kind of thing.  
  
Except now she'd been dropped into "Captain Tsubasa meets Giant Robo meets several different Tezuka series." Yuka had been expecting a kindly and doddering mad scientist with a bulbous nose at any moment.  
  
"You should not be here," stated Ami, glancing back at the two.  
  
"Hey, I gotta see this. Hidden underground bases, secret government organizations, and the tragic love affair between Nabiki and her foreign hero cut short," Yuka gushed with a sparkly look to her eyes.   
  
Ami scanned but did not detect a fever. The other human, Sayuri, was looking frightened. Perhaps putting the two at ease would be an acceptable compromise? Obviously they did want to check on their friend, and the two *did* help discourage some of the others from following. "This way."  
  
The room Ami led the two into held two girls sleeping in tubes. From there another door led to a room with a lot more tubes, these mainly unfinished, and a large upright tube in which floated a very familiar form.  
  
"Man, she's really badly burned." Sayuri looked quite ill as she catalogued the injuries of the figure floating in the tank.  
  
"Nabiki Tendo is still alive, though barely and only due to the operation of three spells. She has at present received: a Raise Dead, Protection From Evil, and Cure Light Wounds. As the effects of a Raise Dead are so draining, the Commander is resting." Ami had decided that a prior command that they refer to him as something as other than Master was acceptable and had settled on this as a substitute.   
  
Yuka nodded. A foreign commander in a top secret government installation. Where was Giant Robo?  
  
Ami noted that Yuka had acknowledged that she understood. Sayuri looked in shock. Further dialogue was needed? "Nabiki Tendo's condition is stable. As you can see, she is missing both legs and one arm, there was considerable damage to her skin - 90% of which was covered in 3rd degree burns. After the spells, her skin is mostly recovered, however the regeneration of skin in her face, eyes, ears, and the missing limbs would require the use of a Regeneration spell, which currently the Commander cannot access unless Project Moonshot occurs."  
  
Yuka looked over the tube. "This looks just like the Bacta Tubes they used on Luke Skywalker in that movie!"  
  
"The gel is composed of nanites programmed to repair flesh plus an analgesic medium. Her lungs were burned also so special preparations had to be made. The tube attached to her remaining arm carries nutrients, nanites, and directly oxygenates the blood." Ami noted that the Sayuri unit was still quite nervous, though the Yuka person was far more focussed and energetic.   
  
Yuka obviously thought of something. "You're gonna rebuild her!"  
  
"Well, yes," agreed Ami.  
  
"Better! Faster! Stronger!" Yuka was on a roll now. Nabiki's life was being saved by her foreign lover and now she would become an agent of this secret government organization which fought evil criminal organizations worldwide.  
  
"That might be a good idea," agreed Ami. Humans tended to be fragile in the first place. A few improvements certainly would be merited.  
  
"The Six Million Dollar Girl!" Yuka posed triumphantly. "Adjusting for modern rates of exchange of course."  
  
----------  
  
Nabiki stared. "They're not serious are they?"  
  
"It looks like Yuka's convincing that marionette to turn you into a cyborg." Lina frowned. "You wouldn't be able to cast spells like that. All that machinery inside you would tend to disrupt the manna flows. Well, looks like my job is done then."  
  
"What?! I almost got the hang of this 'Lightening' spell!" Nabiki wasn't happy. Did this mean she had to go back and train with the Valkyrie? That was bad.  
  
"Like I said, you get turned into a cyborg, magic isn't an option. Normally at least. When they get you rebuilt as human, I'll just do a Dream Message and teach you the rest. At least until you can cast a Drill Brand or Fire Ball. Then you're on your own." Lina pointed. "Look at that. They didn't have bionic breasts in those old TV series, did they?"  
  
"Yuka no hentai," proclaimed Nabiki, floating over the girl's shoulder and looking at the displays she was discussing with the marionette. "How can I stop them from making me the 'Bionic Woman' of this setup?"  
  
"I'm just an astral projection, and you're just a ghost. Try to enter your body again and you'll be stuck and zoned out of your mind on those medications they've got you on." Lina considered. "You can probably try to communicate with Greylle, or you could spontaneously master a higher degree of magic than I've been able to teach you, or you can try and possess one of the androids, or you can pray."  
  
"But he's asleep and I'm a ghost. HOW can I communicate with him?"   
  
"Enter his dreams, just be sure..." Lina looked around but Nabiki had already dove through a wall. Well, considering what Yuka was suggesting for Nabiki's new "accessories" Lina could kind of understand the panic. "Just be sure you don't get trapped or altered when you're in someone else's dream."  
  
----------  
  
Ranma had fled, Genma was hiding, Kasumi was missing. Soun had outfitted the dojo for a funeral and placed the remains of his second oldest daughter in a casket. Akane was looking for Genma since she knew where Kasumi would eventually turn up.  
  
Genma snuck into the dojo and stopped as he realized that Soun was in there.  
  
"Old friend, how could you have raised your son to be so irresponsible?" Soun hadn't bothered to look in his old friend's direction. How many 1500 pound bear-critters could there be in his backyard right now?  
  
Genma looked thoughtful before he pulled out a sign. [Like Father, Like Son?]  
  
"True," Soun deflated a bit after he'd turned to read the sign. This had brought other details to his attention. "By the way have you seen Kasumi?"  
  
Ignoring the hand that popped out of his mouth with a sign reading [Help!], Genma-snorlax shrugged and tried to look innocent.  
  
"Old friend, we went through Hell together with the Master, forging bonds of friendship that have withstood the passage of time, have we not?"  
  
[Oh yes. Definitely.] Genma's sign was a little shaky as if something he had eaten recently was disagreeing with him.  
  
"Then would you kindly STOP SWALLOWING MY DAUGHTERS WHOLE!" If he weren't feeling so tired and put upon, this would have been accompanied by a full blown Demon's Head technique.  
  
[You want me to chew?] Genma's sign asked.  
  
"NO! I don't want you swallowing them at all! And let Kasumi go *now*!"  
  
Kasumi was briefly spat out, covered in drool and other slimy substances, her clothes largely eaten away. She considered saying "oh my" but it came out considerably harsher than that.  
  
[But they taste so *delicious*!] Snorlax-sign flipped. [Can I at least lick them?]  
  
"Well, I suppose..." Soun reluctantly agreed.   
  
Kasumi stared briefly at her father, then took the shreds of her dignity (and clothes) to hunt for the bath. Marriage to that gaijin and moving away was beginning to look more and more like a good idea. Far far far away.  
  
---------  
  
"No no no, because she's so cold and unfeeling, you'd *need* to set her libido that high. Just to bring her up to normal," argued Yuka.  
  
Ami *still* wasn't sure about this.  
  
Sayuri still had serious misgivings about being anywhere *near* this place.  
  
"And I really think that while we're at it, we should redesign..." Yuka's voice trailed off as someone walked into the room. "Uhm..."  
  
The dog marched in from a side room, gave a sharp salute to Ami, bowed elegantly to Yuka and again to Sayuri, then continued along his path to the room containing the two sleeping girls.  
  
"That was a beagle." Yuka declared. "A beagle in the uniform of a WWI flying ace..."  
  
"Yes. An early model to test the process of building rudimentary AI units," Ami looked over to where the bipedal beagle had exited. "However there appears to be something wrong with the unit as he is frequently lost in elaborate fantasies. He has downloaded the appropriate skill packages but some of the personas seem to serve no useful purpose."  
  
---------  
  
Nabiki had drifted through the wall in the direction Lina had indicated.   
  
Then she'd come to a complete stop and had forgotten about the problems going on behind her.  
  
The dragon was here too. Not that Nabiki was stopped because of that. She couldn't know that he'd taken to sleeping in dragonform because Ami and Usagi *still* tried to do all sorts of strange things if he tried to sleep in humanform. Nabiki couldn't know that Workspider had accessed a file of a story by a guy named JRR Tolkein and decided that a picture there of a dragon's bed was accurate.  
  
Nor could Nabiki know offhand that everything making up that dragon's bed was synthetic, crafted by taking various raw materials and altered to energy and then reconsituted. Nabiki wouldn't have likely understood the process immediately anyway.  
  
What she *did* understand was that she was looking at diamonds and emeralds and rubies. Gold and silver and other sparklies. Enough to form a bed for a 52ft long lizard.  
  
Immaterial hands attempted to scoop up a double handful of golden coins. Her hand passed through a ruby half her own height. Nabiki screamed in frustration before she got a shiver up her spine.  
  
Turning, she found a huge eye regarding her.  
  
*Now this is interesting. Nabiki Tendo, astrally projecting? i don't think i've seen *that* before.*  
  
"Uhm well..." Nabiki tried to regain equilibrium.  
  
The dragon licked his lips then yawned to show long sharp teeth. *So, Nabiki Tendo, why dost thou beard a dragon in its lair.*  
  
"Uhm," Nabiki's eyes kept getting caught by all the glittering riches around her and distracting her. "Errr."  
  
*Or is your presence here but a dream? Though dragons don't dream in the same manner as humans. Most curious.*  
  
"Well, if *your* body was as messed up as mine is you wouldn't want to be there either." Nabiki scowled. "That's right, Yuka and Sayuri! They're convincing one of your dolls to make 'improvements' in me! You've got to stop them!"  
  
*What's in it for me?*  
  
Nabiki gasped. "But..."  
  
*Beware, Nabiki Tendo. Lest you be treated as you treat others.* The dragon looked away briefly. *Yet I suppose that i must interfere. You should regain your mortal form as soon as possible. Eventually the Protection From Evil will run out and you don't want anyone else entering your form before you return.*  
  
"Uhm..."  
  
The dragon slowly lifted himself off his "bedding". *Do not worry, Nabiki Tendo. Payment will be deferred until later. Now go, i shall restrain those wild impulses which worry you so much.*  
  
------  
  
"So you'll mainly communicate with me through a 'sacred mirror' from now on?" Hotaru looked more than a little uncertain.  
  
"Yes," said the image in the mirror. "Mainly on an 'as needed' basis. This way you have to rely mainly on yourself and you'll develop your skills better as a result."  
  
Hotaru was *very* uncertain about going mainly solo. She also had other issues and concerns to address. "Well, can you show me my fiance? I deserve to know *that* at least."  
  
The image of Amaterasu cleared, becoming the image of Greylle in his new human form.  
  
Hotaru stared for a moment. "He looks... interesting."  
  
"Hotaru-chan, you'll find him more interesting when you get older. Keep in mind, less than a decade seperates your births. With a lifespan measured in centuries that shall become less problematic as the decades accrue."  
  
----------  
  
"Okay, he's got enough room. Send all of Greylle's stuff from storage to one of the rooms he's using in that timeline. Because otherwise he's cut off from his personal belongings until he comes back. No, no, no. Don't send *that*. Yeah, just the stuff that's rated less than a Class 4 Hazard. What do you mean 'too late'. Those bracers? No, they weren't classified. Uh huh. Goodbye." Urd hung up the phone, sat back, and shrugged. Why hadn't the boy figured out any of those wonderful little *extras* she had added to his humanform? Or more importantly: used them.  
  
Yeesh, there were times he was as pathetic as Keiichi. Speaking of which, maybe she ought to see what Bell and he were doing on that island...  
  
Oh ho! Now *that* was about time!  
  
---------  
  
Yuka and Sayuri leapt as one as Greylle entered the room, yawning and stretching. And shirtless as he hadn't expected anyone to be here besides his marionettes or one of the 'bots. "Ami? When did you build doubles of Yuka and Sayuri? Oh, never mind. Outfit them with some of the Knight Sailor powerarmor when it finishes, will ya? That way we can send them as a Rapid Response team per that deal with the Diet."  
  
Sayuri was about to protest when she found Yuka's hand abruptly covering her mouth.  
  
"Oh, and don't make too many changes in Nabiki Tendo. She's floating around here in astral form for some reason. Just use partial bionic conversion to reinforce her frame enough to support the replacement limbs. If she's going to be doing astral projection and stuff, she's gonna need psychic circuits and supporters. Nabiki, if you're still around and listening: it'll take me a month to set up a healing chamber to the point where i can regenerate limbs. So you'll be stuck with the bionics at least that long." Another yawn. "Did Workspider finish the bath?"  
  
"Not yet, sir," indicated Ami. "Other priorities needed to be addressed. Nabiki will finished by morning, however."  
  
"Good enough."   
  
-------  
  
Workspider was a fairly simple AI robot. The first thing that Greylle had built after the elevator had been crafted, though he'd left room for upgrades. He'd used basics from a brief stint on Rifts Earth, combined with elements from Terratoo.  
  
The result was a Neural Intelligence robot installed in a spiderlike eight-limbed frame. The rear four legs had grippers based on Vice-Grip pliers but also had roller wheels that could be rotated down below the "jaws". The front four legs had gripper/manipulators and a similar arrangement where a tool/hand could be rotated into place. One had a plasma welding torch, another could extend a light-sabre like cutting tool, another had a "shovel hand" to dig with, and the fourth had a set of delicate manipulators for precision work.  
  
Workspider was *not* a combat unit despite having the *physical* potential for it. Its programming was entirely oriented to building things and being useful. This was its simple purpose in life, and actually made Workspider happy in as much as it was currently capable of happiness. It knew it was programmed to be that way, and that it had been built for that function, and could care less about its lack of freedom or career options. Asimov would have found his Three Laws Of Robotics hardwired in place and would have been delighted.  
  
The robot Workspider recharged its batteries and tried to scan files and come up with other ways it could be useful. It did the electronic equivelant of "ooh" and "aah" as it considered various upgrades to itself. An outer skin would keep dust from getting in its joints, so that was a definite consideration. Memory upgrades would also be helpful. Though *other* units seemed to be something to consider adding.  
  
Not more copies of itself, to be sure. Nor combat units. A Med-bot to take care of problems like that young lady's wounds. Repair-bots. Travel time being a factor, perhaps an AI in some form of transportation.  
  
It didn't understand magic. There were records and images of it, but it lacked the ability to manipulate those forces, therefore these were considered interesting but nothing that could be dealt with at present.  
  
A probe extended to the fabricator as a decision was made. Files were accessed and transferred. As parts were fabricated, they were taken away by the manipulators and fitted together. The Master had been quite busy, so approval could be sought later. In the meantime, some help around the tunnels was required. As for the design, the possibilities seemed best filled by marionette technology. The unease of the human units Yuka and Sayuri had been well noted. Particularly the Sayuri unit. Causing a human distress was not something Workspider wanted to do if it could be helped.  
  
Workspider considered and decided full blown AI wasn't indicated by the basic design, but it *did* increase the adaptibility of the unit. Odds were weighed with mechanical precision. Add. Basic engram of original scanned would increase the adaptibility and therefore usefulness.  
  
The first unit was built and considered itself for a moment before calmly going over and beginning to work on the nanotubes so that it could finish itself. By the time it had done so, three more units had been assembled.  
  
--------  
  
Ranma was doing something he was *not* used to doing. Sulking.  
  
It was late and he was getting heat from two of the girls. The third was dead, and he could admit (to himself if nobody else) that he might have had some wee tiny little smidgen of responsibility in her getting to that condition.  
  
He'd done the best that he could, it was just that once those pipes had started exploding the surroundings had started coming apart.  
  
It was just as well that he was persona non grata in the house, he had a lot to think about. Even if the blonde pretty boy hadn't been completely honest, what he'd accomplished had impressed Ranma. In a tiny little miniscule manner, of course. If it had been martial arts, it had been a *lot* more impressive than that crap with the moose.  
  
If he ever saw another damn moose it would be too soon. Pops was still giving him grief that he'd gotten his ass kicked by a moose. Next time he saw one: they'd be cleaning up moose splat for blocks!  
  
Ryouga was gonna get his butt kicked too. What was with using the Iron Cloth manuever on thrown projectiles? Didn't he know how damn dangerous that could be. It was *Ryouga's* fault that he was up here on the roof, Ryouga's fault that everyone in the house was blaming Ranma for the death of that Nabiki chick, Ryouga's fault that that girl died! The only person not blaming Ranma for this spate of current affairs was Shampoo, who had snuck him out a blanket.  
  
Standing up, Ranma raised a fist to the Heavens. "RYOUGA HIBIKI! YOU SHALL PAY FOR THIS!" Hmmm. Gee, that felt better. No wonder Ryouga was always pulling that crap.  
  
---------  
  
Sayuri had known Yuka for years. Both had been into shojo manga and magical princess series when they were younger. "Rose of Versailles" had been something they'd heavily fantasized with and had even collaborated on a dojinshi together when they'd been younger. They hadn't sold it or distributed it very widely, they'd just done it out of sheer enjoyment.  
  
Sayuri had grown out of it, turning her attention to things more in keeping with the typical teenage girl. The occasional shojo story might be read, but one couldn't get too much into it and risk becoming unpopular. Heavens no.  
  
Yuka had put on the mask of respectibility. That's all it had been, a mask. Now the mask was off and the inner otaku revealed.  
  
"We're going to lose popularity," cautioned Sayuri on the way home.  
  
"Who cares?" Yuka said with a smile.   
  
"*I* do. And you should too."  
  
Yuka shook her head. Martial arts had never interested her. Fantasy, to a lesser extent. On the other hand, sentai series with beautiful young girls protecting Tokyo was a fish of a markedly different color. "We'll be more popular than ever if that's what you want."  
  
"How do you get *that*?!"  
  
"We keep our secret identities until the Menace shows up, then we reveal ourselves when the Menace is beaten."  
  
"We're gonna get killed by the first Monster Of The Week!"  
  
"No," disagreed Yuka. "It'll go after Akane first. All the weirdness like that Hentai Horde does. Then we go into action!"  
  
Sayuri looked at her friend as if she'd gone nuts. This was pretty much her opinion at the time. "Even with this 'power armor' stuff, do you honestly think we can fight?"  
  
Yuka shrugged. "Worry about that when we've *got* power armor."  
  
"What's this 'we' you refer to?"  
  
Yuka put an arm around Sayuri's shoulders and winked. "Trust me. I know what I'm doing."  
  
"Couldn't we just do karaoke instead?"  
  
-----------  
  
In an early morning dawn, several things were occurring. Besides a WWI Flying Ace preparing to go look for the Red Baron and coming home several hours later with several pizzas of the same name because the skies of 1992 Tokyo were mysteriously clear of red triplanes.   
  
Besides many mysterious figures leaving Furinkan High School, their mission complete. Well, mainly.  
  
And definitely besides Soun getting drunker than a sailor on his first shore leave while alternately ranting about Saotome raising his son to be such a reckless fool, then going on about how the only way to fix this mess was to have the wedding of Ranma and Akane *at* the funeral of Nabiki.  
  
Something more eventful than Kasumi sneaking downstairs and trying not to awaken Mister Saotome because she was really a lot more than merely tired of scraping drool off of her.  
  
No this was nearby but not quite at the dojo yet.  
  
Nabiki had listened to the talk. Temporary repairs and enhancements. At least a month to get the chamber where it needed to be before limbs and life threatening injuries could be repaired. From what she understood of Shard's often mangled Japanese: he had to build the machines that would build the machines that would eventually be the healing tube. Then, when it *was* finished, it would take over a week for her to be healed to where she could rejoin society.  
  
In the meantime she had cyborg systems that *looked* mostly normal. The clothes were a little strange, Usagi had come up with *this* outfit based on some files she kept consulting. Nabiki wondered what kind of strange anime series had been in those files. Or maybe it was a fighting game. It had that odd impractical-but-flashy look to it.  
  
While walking alongside "the time-traveling alien prince", she wondered what she could do.  
  
Query: Diagnostic.  
RUNNING DIAGNOSTIC. Cyborg Parts OK.  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow, which she realized was also artificial. This had possibilities.   
  
Query: Detail.  
RUNNING...  
MULTI-OPTIC EYES, Mk III. Telescopic Vision 8x. Macro lens x16. Passive Night Vision: skipped - ambient light too high for test mode. Thermo Imaging: skipped - ambient light too high for test mode. Light Filters: active. Targetting display: inactive.  
BIONIC HEARING. Amplified Hearing: at default setting. Ultrasonic Hearing: default off.  
STRENGTH LEVEL: Rated at 30. Right arm and legs only. Left arm rated as 8.  
GRAV SYSTEM: offline  
TOXIC FILTER: online, inactive. No dangerous micro-organisms or substances detected.  
BIONIC LUNG (RIGHT): online, active.  
BIONIC SPLEEN: online, active  
SENSOR SUITE: Radar: online, inactive. HAZMAT Detection System: online, active - no hazardous materials/conditions detected. Gyro-compass: online, inactive. Tactile sensitivity: 1/1.  
HEADJACK: online, inactive.  
INTERNAL BATTERIES: 98% charge  
BIO-COMP: active  
TRANSCIEVER: online, active  
DEFENSE SYSTEM: online, inactive  
OVER 18: online, inactive  
  
Nabiki frowned thoughtfully while half-listening to the gaijin explain that he suspected that Ami and Usagi had taken some liberties but he was reluctant to yank her insides out looking for them.  
  
Query: Headjack  
  
Nabiki blinked as a display letterboxed into her field of vision. A headjack apparently gave her the ability to hook directly into machines equipped for such, and she could even download information directly through such a thing.  
  
Which led her to wonder about some of the other things on the list. A brief check of "Amplified Hearing" had her clutching her ears and crouched onto the ground.  
  
Greylle sighed and whispered to her. "Nabiki, experiment at a different time. Use default settings for now."  
  
Nabiki nodded then looked relieved as she got it under control. She *definitely* would have to check some of this out. "What's the defense system anyway?"  
  
"Hmmm. Oh don't worry. That was something i added. Minor forcefield projection ability, but it'll only activate when you're in immediate physical danger. The problem is that it'll exhaust your batteries if you keep it active for long. If you check your pockets you'll find a recharger, just plug it in overnight while you're sleeping."  
  
Nabiki pulled a power cord out of her pocket. "Uhm... Do I want to know where it gets plugged in?"  
  
"Belly button, same as Usagi and the other marionettes. i used most of the same systems since i want to keep a supply of spare parts handy for quick repairs." Greylle considered. "Oh. No, it'd be fairly impractical to put it on your back, you'd need to get help every night..."  
  
Nabiki glanced to the side. Was he *that* clueless? Looked like it. Oh well.  
  
Stopping at the main gate, Greylle gestured. "Are you ready to face your family?"  
  
Nabiki nodded, smirking. This could be fun.  
  
=============  
  
end chapter 7 retake. 


	8. Chapter 8: Take Me Out Of This Ball Game

Chapter 8 Retake: Take Me Out Of The Ball Game  
  
DISCLAIMER: an unintended fic which has gotten entirely out of control.  
  
-----------  
  
There had been no one at the front door, so the two had gone to the dojo.  
  
Black crepe, a cardboard coffin, and the stand were signs that things had progressed with Soun's usual measure of good taste and restraint.  
  
"...but even if she was a soulless moneygrubbing mercenary whose only pleasure in life was sucking the funds out of helpless students, she was till my sempai and I admired..." Ryonami took one good look at the pair coming in the door and fainted.  
  
"Yes, so true, my poor daughter. I..." Soun stared. "Uhm..."  
  
Nabiki asking who the funeral was for died in her throat when she saw the picture of her atop the coffin. "..." Even though her legs were bionic, they felt weak and she leaned against the tall gaijin for balance. "Someone tell me you didn't notify the police or someone I was dead."  
  
Her father's nervous look was enough.   
  
It would take a few days for all the paperwork to circulate, but Nabiki knew what a chaotic mess the Japanese legal system could be. She'd likely be running into problems from this for years. There was an immediate temptation to just take Shard-san's arm and have him take her *back* to that hidden underground base. She wasn't sure how he'd managed to blank her senses for five minutes while leaving, including that gyro-compass thing apparently, but it seemed the American didn't trust her that much.  
  
Not that Nabiki blamed him. She wouldn't trust Nabiki Tendo either.  
  
"Well, Nabiki, i'll leave you here then," Greylle said, getting uncomfortable with the situation. "If you notice any problems - contact me before 4:30pm (16:30 hours) today. Otherwise i'm going to be out of town."  
  
"Out of town," repeated Nabiki with the beginnings of a frown. What if something happened like a joint freezing up? "For how long?"  
  
"Depends on what i find," responded the blond. "It could be a simple trip back as soon as i get there, or i could spend days trying to find clues."  
  
After watching him leave, Nabiki walked over to the casket to find her missing arm. "Don't suppose you found my legs too."  
  
Akane demanded to know what was going on. After collecting and paying 5000 yen to Nabiki, Akane (and the others) listened to how Nabiki had been rebuilt. At her father's disbelief, Nabiki had slid open an access panel on her forearm.  
  
Soun Tendo, on seeing metal and plastic inside his daughter's forearm, fainted.  
  
------------  
  
Hiroshi stared. Daisuke stared. Yuka and Sayuri stared. So were all of the students who had appeared, expecting to see Furinkan High School as it had been yesterday afternoon. With half of the school a burned out and blasted ruin.  
  
"Why an extra floor?" Daisuke had counted rows of windows and he was relatively sure that Furinkan had only had three floors yesterday morning. Nor had it gleamed as if newly built. Or rebuilt as it were.  
  
"Why does it have that tower thing over there?" Sayuri asked, still rubbing sleep out of her eyes.  
  
"Looks like steam coming off the pool," observed Yuka. "A heated *outdoor* pool?"  
  
Then the changes to the school were put off as insignificant. NABIKI was walking up to the doors of the school.  
  
Nabiki was followed by Akane and Ranma. Both of whom stared at the rebuilt school before shrugging and walking in.  
  
Most of the students decided to follow this lead and enter as well. When the going gets weird, ignore it. Life as usual in Nerima to some extent.  
  
----------  
  
"Where is he?" asked Ami as she entered with four bags of rectangular objects.  
  
"Still working on the vehicle," responded Usagi. "He hasn't noticed your departure. Your mission was successful?"  
  
"Data was procured," agreed Ami. "They had several sections of this reference material."  
  
"I see," said Makoto. "Combat techniques?"  
  
"Of a sort," Ami indicated, pulling a videotape out of a bag. "As soon as he departs for his mission, we will be able to best determine which course of attack to use."  
  
Makoto frowned as she read the indicated title. "'The Amityville Hooker'?!"  
  
"The proprietor was quite clear that this was one of his finer pieces of cinema." Ami placed the videotape back in the sack. "It should prove quite informative."  
  
-------  
  
"Workspider reporting as ordered, sir!"  
  
"At ease," Greylle ordered. He didn't want to step on anyone's developing personality but this paramilitary stuff was a bit odd. That Workspider also apparently had developed a liking for polka and Weird Al Yankovich was unfortunate and unforeseeable but at least harmless.  
  
"Lower outer hull welded together and painted the requested color."  
  
"That wasn't what i wanted you for, but thanks." Greylle continued to work on assembling a sensor mast, only occasionally glancing towards the robot.  
  
Workspider 01 had no sweat ducts, otherwise it would have been sweating. "Sir?"  
  
"You have been upgrading your capabilities and systems considerably," said Greylle. "That's perfectly alright. i expect you and the marionettes to upgrade yourselves to meet new situations and develop in both personality as well as your physical abilities. It's this other activity."  
  
"Sir?" Workspider was cataloguing a new experience. It was apprehensive and nervous. Which fascinated it and pleased it to some extent, as this was further evidence of developing a personality, even though it would have preferred a less distressing emotional state to explore.  
  
"You got all seven marionette manufacturing nanomachine tubes, aka nanotanks, operational. Good work, even though i'd prefer you let me know before you go off on your own initiative. Adding another three nanotanks overnight was quite interesting. That doesn't trouble me as much as what is being put together in those tanks." Greylle looked up at the large spider-mech and made a point of looking unhappy. "Do *not* do this again."  
  
"By your command." Workspider fidgited. Its first reprimand. Oh dear. R2 would never let it live it down.  
  
Greylle nodded. "Now that we've established that, WHO are you building in those nanotanks?"  
  
"Available data indicated that Commanding Officer spent time in several timelines prior to this one and met and interacted with female humans."  
  
Greylle stopped putting together the sensor mast and stood up. Slowly he turned. Step by step. Inch by inch.  
  
Workspider was registering increased anxiety levels.  
  
"You *didn't*." Greylle informed the Workspider. "You did *not* defeat the password protection on my personal files and you did *not* begin to manufacture marionettes based on girls who have broken my heart in the past."  
  
"...I didn't...?!"  
  
"No," Greylle continued. "Because if you did that, i would seriously consider downgrading your operational parameters until you were a walking trash receptacle. Therefore, you will find a way that you did *not* do this. Do you understand this?"  
  
Workspider hadn't been operational for more than a few days, but it still understood the basics here. The CO was not happy. Therefore the anchor position in the chain of command was not a good place to be. "I understand."  
  
"If their core processors have been developed, then you couldn't scrap them. If the units have developed much at all, then you can't do anything but bring them to full operation. i merely express the hope that you have *not* brought them to this state."  
  
"Well..."  
  
Sighing a deep and long sigh. "Fine. Finish them but do *not* activate. Leave them asleep and i'll see what can be done when i return. Allow *no* outsiders into the room. Use full security protocols and cover story #4: accident with unstable and caustic chemical solutions."  
  
Workspider was hoping that the reference to downgrading was not actually being planned.   
  
--------  
  
Time is nature's way of keeping everything from happening all at once. Nonetheless a lot can be going on at the same time.  
  
In his underground base, Greylle was continuing to work on a transport vehicle he'd had a few ideas regarding for some time. He'd thought extensively about some of this while on Gehenna in fact. So he would finally build the silly thing, and the Arcadia would eventually have a docking bay for this vehicle. Just a multi-environment shuttlecraft/transport, but he could always add features later. Of course, he could just go dragon and fly to Antarctica using the ley lines for bursts of speed, but if he *did* find the Senshi he wasn't big enough to carry all of them at once. Hence building the transport first.  
  
Ami and the rest of the Sailor Marionettes (save one) were trying to continue on with expanding the base and operating it while waiting for their Master to leave so they could watch those tapes.  
  
Kasumi was putting a fresh coat of varnish on the upstairs hallway floor. Her next task would be to take down all the decorations from the dojo. What she was going to do with Nabiki's arm was another problem. It didn't seem right to just bury it in the backyard.  
  
Soun and Genma were getting drunk. Soun was exuberant over the return of his daughter, saddened by her transformation into a cyborg, and ecstatic over how well Ranma and Akane were getting along. Why just that morning, Akane had beaten Ranma over the head with a cast iron skillet! Though Akane was also getting along well with that gaijin. Though he also liked Nabiki enough to bring her back from the dead!  
  
Genma was wondering if he could ferret out that gaijin's secrets. They'd be worth quite a lot of money. For that matter, if he could steal the bionic limbs off that daughter of Soun's, who knew how much money he could get for those!  
  
Akane Tendo was gazing wistfully out the window. Shard-sama was nice and kind and sweet and a healer. So much like a young Doctor Tofu. Akane colored as she realized she'd started using the "sama" suffix. Not that she was interested in some gaijin... Heavens no. She didn't like boys, right? Right!  
  
Nabiki Tendo was sitting bolt upright in her chair and perspiring. She made a note to *never* again go into that "Over 18" menu that Usagi had added. Nope. At least not unless she was alone and assured of privacy. She also vowed that somehow she *had* to beat the odds and get the gaijin. It was how to get his trust long enough for her to latch on that was confounding her.  
  
Yuka daydreamed of being a Knight Sailor and having her own manga and anime series.  
  
Sayuri daydreamed of bopping her friend Yuka with a mallet.  
  
Hikaru Gosunkugi gazed wistfully at Akane Tendo and daydreamed of bopping Ranma with a mallet.   
  
Ranma wondered how he could get some food. Lunch had been over an hour ago and he was *starving!* Of course, if he asked either Shampoo or Ukyo for food, the same thing that had happened the last time was liable to happen. Big fight sequence and HE would get blamed for it.  
  
Kodachi Kuno considered ways of dealing with the Furinkan Rhythmic Gymnastics team. She considered being open and above board, meeting them in the match and defeating them there. Nah. Usual tactics had given Saint Hebereke an unbroken string of victories, why change a winning strategy?  
  
Ryouga planned his revenge against Ranma, and wondered why he kept ending up at this small mountain village when he was trying to find Furinkan High School.  
  
Hotaru tended the shrine and shared a giggle with one of the girls who'd shown up to buy a good luck charm. It was nice to be able to chat and gossip, especially when the conversation turned to boyfriends and she was able to respond by showing a photo and mention an arranged marriage. Suitable comments of envy were extremely odd to be applied to Hotaru Tomoe, but she decided she kind of liked it.  
  
-------------  
  
Minako was the single of the Sailor series Marionettes who was *not* involved in building rooms and corridors and trying not to wait out a chance to view those tapes. She was busy analyzing what data she could access and building a database. Like the rest of her series she had engrams based on incomplete scans of an original - in her case one Minako Aino, aka Sailor Venus.   
  
She wasn't building or excavating the complex because she was planning on accompanying her Master to the Antarctic and wanted to get some research done prior to what was potentially a long trip.  
  
She knew fully well that she was a marionette android, an artificial intelligence who had been created for a specific job. Her love for her creator was artificial - part of a control program shared by all marionettes. Neither origin was relevant. Like the others she had concluded that she was real enough, origins didn't matter. So what she was doing was perusing data on various originals.  
  
Each of the Sailor series Marionettes were crafted in the likeness of an original, and part of their programming was to emulate (to varying degrees) that original.  
  
One of the things each of the Sailor series were attempting to accomplish was to upgrade themselves to the point where they could accomplish their goals. One of the goals they sought to accomplish was to become fully awakened as "people" - individuals with some common goals who more closely paralleled their original.  
  
Minako had discovered that the original Minako Aino had dreams of becoming an idol singer. Therefore she had researched "idol singer" and had discovered that "idol singer" careers lasted between a few months and less than seven years. With routine maintenence, she could easily last hundreds of years at least. Clearly this was not a compatible timeframe. Idol singer = entertainer (music) therefore a musician with a longer active period.  
  
Classical musicians had the longest period of activity, but were not *as* active nor really matched the profile. Rock musicians had a period of activity that was often short but individuals had proven able to withstand long periods of time. Analysis of those began, looking for common themes and practices.  
  
Certain records indicated possibilities. Analysis did not immediately lead to some single "star quality" but rather at several common points. Files were accessed and downloaded.  
  
--------  
  
There weren't many breaks in her day, but Doctor Mizuno still found the occasional moment when she could set down with a newspaper. She'd thrown herself into her work for some time after her daughter's disappearance.  
  
There hadn't been much she could do, other than find out that all her daughter's friends had turned up missing as well. Now it was a year later and...  
  
Kumori Mizuno stared at the paper. It was a tiny article tucked away in a small section of the paper.  
  
"GENIUS GIRL TO ATTEND FURINKAN  
[Ami Mizuno, infamous cram school student  
[ will be attending Furinkan Senior High   
[ School according to a school administrator  
[ yesterday.  
[ According to this same school administrator,  
[ who wishes to remain anonymous, a makeup   
[ entrance exam was given to Mizuno-san and  
[ several of her friends, and perfect scores  
[ were attained by all.  
[ Furinkan Senior High School, in the Furinkan  
[ section of Nerima ward, has been marred by   
[ less than stellar academic achievements to   
[ date."  
  
One of the nurses wondered out loud where Doctor Mizuno was going in such a hurry.  
  
--------  
  
Mamoru Chiba stared at the paper. The white cat on his shoulder likewise stared at the paper.  
  
"Ami?" Mamoru said in a disbelieving tone.  
  
"It can't be." Artemis said. "It says 'several of her friends' here too. Do you suppose that means..."  
  
"But then why hasn't she come back?" Mamoru's jaw tightened slightly. "Didn't Luna say that guy she saw was in Nerima?"  
  
"At a high school," agreed Artemis. "Looks like a trip to Furinkan needs to be scheduled."  
  
--------  
  
The school clock ticked from 4:29 to 4:30.  
  
Nabiki and Akane watched as Ranma continued to play around in the water like a dolphin. Apparently being able to swim while staying a guy was something he missed, and the water in the pool was sufficiently warm that he stayed male.  
  
There was a rumble and those outside the pool could see the bottom of it sliding aside.  
  
Ranma yelped as the water rocked back and forth and the temperature suddenly lowered enough that Ranma-kun became Ranma-chan.  
  
A color was visible first, a bright yellow shade often seen on construction equipment. Then a large shape broke the water and began rising into the air. That Ranma-chan was clinging to it and yelling something about the unfairness of the situation was idly noted by the people who had been waiting to use the pool. A few noticed that the bottom of the pool had once again slid into place.  
  
Minako was standing on the deck and noticed the audience and pulled a Jigglypuff manuever. Crowd = audience = need to perform. Clearly with this particular vehicle, a specific song was called for.  
  
"In the town where I was born,  
Lived a man, who sailed to sea,  
And he told us of his life,  
in the land of the marines."  
  
Lots of staring faces as the dripping vehicle slowly rotated around.   
  
"So we sailed unto the sun,  
till we found a sea of green,  
and we lived beneath the waves,  
in our Yellow... Submarine!"  
  
Ranma-chan managed to yell as she fell fifty feet into the pool. Unfortunately drenching Akane, Yuka, and Sayuri. Nabiki mysteriously stayed dry.  
  
"We all live in a Yellow Submarine,  
Yellow Submarine, Yellow Submarine,  
We all live in a Yellow Submarine,  
Yellow Submarine, Yellow Submarine!"  
  
Moving like a big fat yellow blimp, the ship began to ascend.  
  
"And our friends are all aboard,  
many more of them, live next door,  
and the band begins to play!"  
  
Ranma tried out the odd English phrasing as the ship continued to climb. "They all live in a yellow submarine?"  
  
"A yellow submarine?" Akane asked.  
  
"Yellow submarine," agreed Nabiki.  
  
"Yellow submarine," seconded Yuka.  
  
-------------  
  
"Full ahead, Mister Snoopy!"  
  
The beagle turned and saluted, then focussed his attention on the controls again.  
  
Having only hooked up the navigator's screen and not the majority of displays and scanners, Greylle was completely unaware that Minako was *still* on deck singing with full musical accompaniment. Knowing that Snoopy had programming that he was an accomplished pilot and could avoid obstacles, Greylle turned his attention fully to continuing to hook up systems, run wiring, and bolt seats into place.  
  
The ship itself was relatively small, at least when compared to most modern submarines. Fifteen feet long, seven feet across, ten feet tall. The inside was comparable to a customized van from the era when such gas-guzzlers were a lifestyle. It was intended only as a sort of shuttlecraft, one that could double as a flying sub.  
  
Minako continued to sing. When she reached the end of "Yellow Submarine" she began dancing and singing to other groups that she had files on. Aerosmith's "Rag Doll" was followed by the Bangles' "Venus" (which she decided to make her signature song due to personal relevance) and ended with "I wanna hold your hand" after the last news chopper started heading back to Tokyo and they were way out over the Pacific Ocean.  
  
Bored, she activated her flight engine briefly to flit about the craft but quickly discovered that this was a *bad* manuever. Her top speed flying was currently about 65mph. The submarine, on the other hand, was currently travelling at 90mph and steadily accelerating now that they were away from Tokyo.  
  
Watching her ride disappear in the distance, Minako made a note in memory to not do that again. Sighing deeply, Minako decided to head back to base. She hoped that Rei didn't chastise her too much for this understandable if unfortunate setback.  
  
---------  
  
"Woof." [Systems nominal. Antigrav active and performing within normal markers.]  
  
"Okay, increase speed to cruising." Greylle began ratcheting the last chair into position.  
  
"Arf!" [Increasing speed and altitude. Will attain cruising speed of Mach 4.8 at two nautical miles.]  
  
"That's good. Keep an eye out for bogeys but do not engage."  
  
"Urf Arf!" [But of course, mein kapitan! You still haven't loaded any weapons, have you?]  
  
"True," agreed Greylle. "Nor the chameleon circuit. The weapons will mainly be on the Arcadia."  
  
"Grrr. Arf." [While I understand that you wanted to maintain a low threat potential so as to avoid alarming anyone, human history is liberally sprinkled with acts of armed barbarians taking advantage of their neighbor's more civilized beneficience - with death and pillaging their method of annoucement.]  
  
"i take it you disapprove of my not putting weapons on this submarine."  
  
"Growl grrr arf." [My Sopwith Camel at least has a pair of charged machine guns. Won't you at least consider a torpedo or two?]  
  
"Well, eventually i hope to add trans-phasic circuitry and a chameleon mode. Weapons would kind of mess up that just from room. i'll consider it though."  
  
"Woof ruff." [We have reached cruising altitude and speed.]  
  
-----------  
  
The easiest way to deal with the tapes was to digitize them. Translated and stored in a digital format, the marionettes could easily access that information and then each could scan different bits for later exchange and comparison.  
  
Also that way they wouldn't keep the tapes past the rental period.  
  
The translation process was subject to high speed observation by the marionettes that had been activated to this point.  
  
Each had their own interests, of course. Their personalities were being shaped in part by the engram recordings of their Originals. They were building on that foundation on their own as their Ishii Kairo developed.  
  
Ami & Usagi watched the "hentai" tapes. Ami studied anatomy and considered upgrades. Usagi watched techniques and situations and fashioned emotive and reactive subroutines.  
  
Makoto and most of the others lost interest after the first few minutes during which the tapes showed small variants of the same scenes and acts. Besides, it was universally decided that tentacled monsters were of limited usefulness. Also quite gross.  
  
More useful data was scanned from the "live action" films though again there did not seem to be much different from one tape to the next.   
  
It took five hours for Ami & Usagi to finish and return the tapes. They didn't understand the looks from the various patrons and clerks at the establishment. None mattered. Though one of the patrons followed and attempted to accost Usagi.  
  
Usagi reacted to the attempt to restrain her and push her into an alleyway exactly in a manner typical of a young girl possessed of the ability to lift 1.6 metric tons. Ami verified that no vital organs or bones were broken before they continued on.  
  
In the meantime each of the other marionettes was occupied in research more in keeping with their own specialties. Makoto analyzing tapes and displays and books on the subject of martial arts. Minako studied music and presentation, and discovered data on a time inefficient process known as "makeovers" which went a lot further than they had originally thought. Haruka and Michiru decided more data was needed on piloting and the artistic process respectively. Setsuna, on the other hand, was busy.  
  
Setsuna's data load had indicated that she wanted to be fashion designer. This made absolutely no sense to her. Clothing served a function and artistic value didn't seem to have a logical basis. Nor did she see anything in the engram data to indicate what was needed in fashionable clothing. Aesthetics were not something that she felt she could guess at.  
  
As with Usagi, if it didn't make any sense, the illogical data was discarded until later information could be used to make sense of it. Since "fashion designer" was unlikely to develop without a better understanding of human aesthetics, Setsuna turned her attention fully to the development of android systems. Upgrading herself and the others seemed daunting beyond a certain point, however notes as to something called "power armor" seemed to offer a way to overcome the limitation of retaining a humanlike form while continuing to increase their ability to overcome potential adversaries.  
  
Which was when she ran across a common theme of sentai series. Sailor Moon followed sentai themes, and yet it did not have a giant robot. Clearly another gap in the datafiles that had to be addressed.  
  
--------  
  
Akane looked out at the night sky and sighed deeply. She was, in her own opinion at least, engaged to an utter asshole. Cute, and every so often he would turn loose a smile that would set sparks along her spine, but to say he was crude and disrespectful seemed to be an understatement.  
  
Why couldn't she be engaged to someone like Doctor Tofu? She could just see him with his thick blonde hair, tightly muscled body, blue eyes that seemed to change hue on their own frequently, yes she knew Doctor... ?!  
  
With a little more effort, Akane brought Doctor Tofu's picture to mind. Yes, with the pigtail and the... ?!  
  
Doctor Tofu. The one with the glasses that fell completely apart whenever Kasumi showed up. Yes. Okay. Got it.  
  
Akane sighed a little heavier. Her father and Mister Saotome seemed determined that she wed Ranma. Family honor. "Death is lighter than a feather, duty is heavier than a mountain." Marriage to Ranma seemed to be rather heavier a fate than a feather though. Would he turn out like his father in a few years? Considering how much he ate, it seemed likely.  
  
Akane pictured Ranma as balding, overweight, eating everything in the house and making a mess wherever he went. Now she tried to picture herself married to him. "Bleaahhhhh!"  
  
"Man, that is so uncute!"  
  
Akane blinked and realized that her fiance was hanging from his toes from the roof. "Don't loosen those tiles, Ranma. They're very difficult to replace and there's a storm front moving through later this week."  
  
"Man, it sure rains a lot here," Ranma said, trying to be polite and nice and all that. He didn't have a lot of experience nor a role model for such behavior. "Uhm..."  
  
"What is it, Ranma? It's late." Akane sat back in her chair and regarded her fiance carefully. He was not, it appeared, a pervert. There were plenty of boys in school far more perverted or sick than Ranma.  
  
Neither Akane nor Ranma realized that due to the breakup of the morning battles and the institutionalization of Tatewaki Kuno, as well as some high powered healing spells, that Akane was calmer and more rational than she otherwise would have been. She had not been driven near-psychotic by the idiocy of Kuno's challenge, and she had been exposed to a non-hentai teenage boy who (in her opinion at least) was in love with her. So while she was railing against the complications in her life, she wasn't quite as hostile towards Ranma as she *could* have been.  
  
That didn't mean she didn't think he was an ill mannered jerk.  
  
"Well... uhmm... that is..." (fidget, twitch, blush)  
  
Akane sighed yet again and waited for the sometimes catgirl to get it out.  
  
"Well. Errr..."  
  
Akane began drumming her fingers against her tabletop.  
  
"HEY AKANE! DIG THIS!"  
  
Ranma fell down.  
  
Akane blinked. "Nabiki? You're flying?!"  
  
"Neat isn't it?" Nabiki had changed to her shorts and a tight top and was exulting in the capabilities of being a "partial conversion cyborg" with an antigrav flight unit. "I'm Nabiki the Super Gal!"  
  
Neither Akane nor Ranma knew of all the soul-searching that Nabiki had been doing lately. Nor how she was trying to "re-invent" herself, with limited success to be sure.  
  
"Nabiki, come inside. It's late and you're gonna scare the neighbors," said Akane finally.   
  
Nabiki smirked, hearing a pang of envy in there. She complied, even though using nightvision she could tell there weren't any neighbors watching. She could always do a little flying later when there wouldn't be any prying eyes.  
  
Though she couldn't help but show off her cyborg strength to Akane. It was all a temporary thing, so best to get the most out of it while it lasted.  
  
----------  
  
Upon reaching the area formerly inhabited by a whole bunch of youma and a Queen Beryl, Greylle had taken the sensible precaution of having Snoopy park a distance away.  
  
He took dragonform almost immediately for several reasons. First, he could deal with the cold better. Second, his senses were a *lot* more acute. Third, if he actually was fighting a youma it would go a *lot* different from when he'd been in that First Labor. Dragons were *not* helpless against youma.  
  
Eyes picked out the scene where icy pillars had been thrust from the ground. It had been a year and snow had fallen and winds had stirred things about, so it wasn't *obvious* but if you paid attention and were looking down on it all - you could make out some of it.  
  
No bodies. Neither the youma nor the Senshi had remained of their big battle.  
  
There was little to see and hearing was of little use after a year, but there were other senses that could be used. A silver dragon had a better sense of smell than a red dragon, though a year's passage had erased that too.  
  
Even more obvious was the pulse of magic. A simple Detect Magic drew him to a snowfield, and through it into the caverns underneath. Further on was more protected from the elements, and scents lingered in the still air.  
  
The scent of magic especially. Attack spells like the typical Senshi power blast faded quickly. Accumulate enough of them in an area and if there weren't a lot of people to disturb the traces there would still be resonances in the area.  
  
Greylle was initially reluctant to cast a spell and destroy what traces remained. That meant gathering information from his senses first in the cramped tunnels and chamber.  
  
Well, they were cramped if you were fifty two feet long. Squeezing through them was a pain. Literally at times. Still the place was dark and cold and being a large armored creature was a definite plus. Not that he found dark spooky caverns where youma had been known to gather in vast numbers ready to suck the life out of people to be the sort of thing that made him nervous. No. Maybe a little apprehensive. Just a touch.  
  
Then a glimmer of light in the darkness drew him.  
  
Which brought a dragon named Greylle to stare at a certain crystal.  
  
Greylle had had extremely busy periods in between adventures, and extremely busy periods during adventures, but some of the times he had been *on* adventures had been dull and boring. So he'd studied and tinkered during those periods.  
  
In a D&D world, Artifacts were one-of-a-kind magical items. Usually indestructible except by a single preset manner and pretty darn powerful. Some were merely minor items like the Ring Of The Rose(1) while others qualified as Don't-Mess-With-It and caused the maps to be rewritten when someone was foolish enough to use the damn thing.(2) There tended to be something of balance involved, the more powerful the effect from using it, the more disastrous the down side or price to be paid.  
  
Call it the Ginzuishou, the Eternal Silver Millenium Crystal, the Silver Crystal, or something else, it was still an Artifact.  
  
In fact, looking at it with the earlier cast Detect Magic still running, he could see the weaves and knots of magical force in the outer layers (too bright to make anything out in the more inward section) and could tell that there were some things about this Artifact not covered in the anime or manga.  
  
Like an awful lot of Artifacts, the Ginzuishou was not intelligent that he could see. It *was* however, aware on some level. Like a low level Artificial Intelligence, one that couldn't pass a Turing Test but could respond to a wide variety of stimulus.  
  
Further examination gave him a theory. Each wielder of the Ginzuishou left something of themselves behind, or at least an echo of themselves, which accumulated. It might not be completely correct, but it fit what he was seeing. The Ginzuishou was also pretty darn powerful but not all-powerful. It ran off a "battery" of energy that accumulated while it was in someone's possession, a continual leeching of "positive" energy from the environment. When this battery was depleted, it would drain the life force of the wielder.  
  
There was a few problems with using it, and he *did* want to use it. Without it he couldn't cast the higher level spells until he was considerably older and therefore couldn't find out what had happened to the Senshi or bring them back from the dead (if they were dead).  
  
The first problem was that it was made to be wielded by a member of the royal family of the Moon Kingdom. Or at least someone from the Silver Millenium. Basalt was *gone* - that Aspect of himself had seperated and gone off and died somewhere. It was no longer part of him, therefore he no longer had any connection to some Silver Millenium.  
  
Still, he was a Healer and a cleric, or a White Mage if he had the basics of this particular timeline right. He was also a dragon, in his proper form so magic was something that came fairly easily to him. Magical artifacts of Order were stubborn cusses, but without a Wielder it couldn't focus its full power against him.  
  
Greylle focussed his will on the Ginzuishou, which responded by sending licks of lightning across his scales.  
  
"Idiot damn crystal, I'm trying to resurrect the Senshi here and bring your proper wielder back..." Greylle grit his fangs and further focussed his will on the device. Without the Crystal, he just wasn't high enough level to manage either a Resurrection or a Reincarnate, and without bodies he'd be best off with Reincarnation. Raise Dead was within his ability, but the spell's limits made it useless here.   
  
Okay, there were problems with Reincarnation. For one thing there was no control over *what* they came back as, it was all either random or karma dependent. Though with the Senshi linked together: if one came back as (for example) a Delphins Amazon, then likely they all would. If Usagi came back as a faerie, most likely Makoto would be a dryad and Ami a snow pixie or something otherwise maintaining them as a group.  
  
Problem was, the Ginzuishou was *not* cooperating. It was reacting to him as an outsider, one who had no business playing with it. Only thick armored scales and innate magic resistance were allowing him to keep ahold of it.  
  
Trying another tack he focussed his need and the task to be done at the Crystal.  
  
Which seemed to pause and then attacked on several fronts at once, thrusting through his mind and body with white light.  
  
---------  
  
Ami snapped to attention from where she had been recharging. "Alert. Detecting energy field of unknown origin. Analysis of waveform: magic. Summoning spell with white band pattern. Analyzing pattern. Outer overlay = Master. Power level considerably in excess of Master's estimated capabilities."  
  
The other Sailor Marionettes looked to her. Ami had the most sensitive and wide-range sensors.  
  
Setsuna frowned as she processed this. "Targets of magic?"  
  
Ami looked down at herself and at the other androids. "Ourselves."  
  
"Running diagnostic," responded more than one of the substitute Senshi simultaneously.  
  
"Interesting," stated Minako. "Engrams have been reinforced regarding base persona and there was some kind of energy field that has... we have Maiden Circuits?"  
  
"Confirming transformational charge. Interesting." Ami sounded more excited, which would only have been obvious to the other androids. "Though not much can be done at this point. Powering down to recharge mode."  
  
The other marionettes gave electronic shrugs. It was true that they couldn't actually do much about it, the whole thing was pretty much out of their hands. Better to enter rest mode now.  
  
Especially since Minako had hit on the idea of a sentai team/rock band after scanning some of those sentai series. After school tomorrow would be their big debut.  
  
The appropriate files had already been downloaded.  
  
------------  
  
Nabiki had double checked her charge, found it very low, and reluctantly left her exploration of her newfound power to a later date.  
  
Flight, enhanced strength and durability beyond anything her younger sister had (she had demonstrated to Akane and caught the glimmerings of envy - adequate for Nabiki's own measure), enhanced senses beyond anything she could have afforded, the ability to run at great speeds, and ability to enhance her own ability to experience pleasure...   
  
Okay, there were some downsides. She'd need to be completely organic before she could have kids, though that was something that was far from being an immediate concern. Between the explosion and all the shrapnel, her torso had lots of bionic parts. While a self-exam had produced a pretty good duplicate of all the original equipment, she knew just from running a diagnostic that her skeletal framework had been reinforced so that the powerful cyborg limbs didn't rip loose from the organic parts. Other parts functioned pretty much as the originals or better, but kids would not be an option.  
  
There was also the relatively minor problems with having a large part of your body composed of metal, psuedo-organic tissues, plastic, and nanomachines. You could place refrigerator magnets on her and they'd stick. Large industrial magnets would cause the nanomachine parts to freeze up. Airport security devices and the similar sort of things at various stores would get set off regularly by her.   
  
Changing into pajamas, plugging in the adaptor, then inserting something that looked a lot like a large stereo jack into her navel had a certain degree of creepiness. It went in with a "schnick" sound and a feeling of warmth, which added to the weirdness factor, and Nabiki had felt an immediate wave of drowsiness as internal systems began shutting down to a different mode.  
  
She had a month to explore this before she went back to being normal Nabiki. Since it *was* just a temporary situation, the middle Tendo daughter found the whole thing amusing and interesting as opposed to something to panic about.   
  
Though she'd have to talk to Usagi and Ami about that Over-18 section. She *had* to get the passcodes for the higher functions. Heh.  
  
----------  
  
Akane may have been suppressing envy of her sister now being The Bionic Woman (or at least Schoolgirl) as well of her fiance being a better martial artist and better built as a catgirl than she was. (Actually there was more than just one pang of jealousy as far as Ranma's cursed form went, especially as she could see how Ranma's strength and speed actually increased in what everyone *except* Ranma realized was a catgirl.) Akane may also have been suppressing envy of her not-boyfriend's association with fuku-clad superheroines, and once she learned of Yuka and Sayuri as powerarmor-wearing Knight Sailors she'd likely be envious of *them*.  
  
As to the fact that Nabiki had never looked better, was more toned and "talented" than ever, and had just this air of superiority now? Akane hadn't even noticed. Really. Well, at least she'd be the first to deny it.  
  
Which is likely while Akane was asleep, she was tossing and turning and dreaming dreams of being left behind by everyone in her family and school all developing amazing superpowers and going out on really exciting adventures and saving the universe from all sorts of vile beasties.   
  
However, in the Tendo household, she was not the only one feeling the barbs of envy and wounded pride.  
  
Ranma Saotome of the Anything Goes School Of Martial Arts was feeling serious envy. That foreigner might not have had the basics down right, but he had some special manuevers that were quite impressive. Serious strength and durability too. And now NABIKI was flying about and showing some serious strength of her own.  
  
Ranma hadn't, it should be noted, quite gotten his mind wrapped around the concept of a cyborg. He had seen the metallic framework in Nabiki's forearm and the cables and gadgets when she'd activated an access panel. He had the pieces (so to speak) but hadn't fitted them together.  
  
So Ranma was still working out ways that he could duplicate the effects of these martial arts special manuevers. Flying would be especially good, the Saotome school specializing in mid-air combat after all.  
  
Kasumi also had dreams. While some of these dealt with Snorlax Au Gratin or similar scenarios, there was the occasional one where she was studying to become a Medical Assistant and married to some blond gaijin and living far far away from her ancestral home.   
  
Genma dreamed too. Mainly of food.  
  
Soun dreamed of uniting the two houses by getting Ranma and Akane together and a long peaceful retirement with the future of the Anything Goes school assured. That nothing weird happened and that there were no dojo challengers, monsters-of-the-week, or even any friction between Ranma and Akane was attributable to this being Soun's dream sequence.  
  
Shampoo dreamed of having two handsome and talented airen, showing them off at the village, then returning to Japan with them. The dream turned a bit strange halfway through, with giant robot transforming Nabiki and at one point she dreamed of holding Ranma's hand only to turn around and find it was *Akane* she was holding hands with. But this was attributable to having sampled one of the cookies that Akane had tried to bake earlier.  
  
Away from the Tendo dojo, others dreamed. Yuka dreamed of being a world-famous Magical Girl With A Big Gun. Sayuri dreamed of throttling her best friend Yuka. Usagi dreamed of electric sheep. Ami dreamed of solving unsolvable math problems. Rei dreamed of Usagi getting a clue. Makoto dreamed of understanding humans. Minako dreamed of riding the space shuttle and being a big rock star while juggling salmon. Michiru dreamed of Haruka swimming. Haruka dreamed of Michiru driving a racecar that transformed into a giant robot for no apparent reason. Setsuna dreamed of becoming real. Hotaru dreamed of a wedding, during which there were giant robot battles overhead and she was on the deck of the Space Battlecruiser Yamato.  
  
In other words, it was fairly much what would you would expect of the circumstances.  
  
--------------  
  
(1) - Ring Of The Rose, created long ago by an old elven wizard named Rosewood. Who apparently had been rejected by nearly every beautiful nubile elven girl he'd come into contact with. He decided that his loneliness was caused by the scarcity of same, and not certain odious personal habits, and so came up with the Ring. It grants some special abilities such as Darkvision, but every use causes a 10% alteration in the wielder until they are a beautiful nubile elven girl. There is an elven village of Larktree where beautiful elven maidens come to spit on the grave of an old elven wizard named Rosewood.  
  
(2) - Hand and Eye Of Vecna, Rod Of Priapus, Orb Of Conflagration, The Monkey's Paw, The Suloise Trump, Amulet Of Meteor Summoning, and other things that are generally passed around in cautionary tales as "Things Only A Total Idiot Would Consider Playing With".   
  
============== 


	9. Chapter 9: Illegal Pitch

Chapter 9, Retake: Illegal Pitch  
  
Pain.  
  
Lots of Pain.  
  
Gradually he stirred and became aware of something other than pain. He was in a now-partially buried cavern with fresh air now swirling about him. Eyes creaked open to confirm this.  
  
Apparently he had thrashed about while undergoing all that pain. Sufficient that the cavern now looked as if had taken heavy mortar fire. Eyes opened the rest of the way and Greylle began carefully moving.  
  
He didn't drink. It seemed awfully darn unfair to have a hangover. Though his chest hurt too. Right where a glimmering stone had buried itself?  
  
Greylle craned his neck around to stare at his own chest. Yup, recessed there in his central breast scale was a teeny tiny glimmer of something that looked an awful lot like the Ginzuishou.  
  
As there was no other glimmer or trace of magic present, that left one conclusion, even through all the layers of pain. Turning his attention inward he examined his mana stores and its flow.   
  
Yup. The Ginzuishou had responded in the manner of a primitive AI. That is: in an efficient manner without considering the potential consequences. It had determined that its current best bet of serving its mistress (that would be Neo Queen Serenity) was to insinuate itself into this intruder. That left what the heck had happened to Usagi & Friends.  
  
Greylle considered, and the last thing he could sort of vaguely remember was trying to just bull ahead and cast Reincarnation through the Crystal. There were no bodies of Senshi or anything else nearby, so it clearly had not worked. The Crystal had ties to the Senshi and sufficient power. Conclusion: not the dead Senshi.  
  
Of course, he *was* high enough level to try a Speak With Dead. It required a corpse, however. So details had to be determined by other means.  
  
Crawling out of the cavern, Greylle buried his head briefly in the snow to help clear it. Using the power enhancing function of the Crystal, he could try something else. Divination wasn't the primary thrust of Healer priests, but they weren't prohibited from that area either. There was only one spell he could think of that might do the trick.  
  
Legend Lore. It often gave cryptic results, and the casting time was a royal pain, and his store of incense strips wasn't that great. Four were required to cast the spell. Well, he *had* told everyone that this might take awhile.  
  
Climbing down into the cavern again, Greylle prepared to cast the spell.  
  
--------  
  
Akane tried to ignore Ranma's attempts to start a conversation. They always followed the same pattern anyway. He'd talk around the subject he was trying to get to, getting lost in the process, and finally make some stupid remark. Akane would respond in kind. He'd insult her. She'd hit him. Back to square one. Childish really.  
  
The youngest Tendo saw Ami and Usagi talking to Nabiki and eagerly walked toward them. Waitaminute, why were Yuka and Sayuri (Yuka looking chipper, Sayuri looking as if she expected to be shot) speaking with them?  
  
"Not now, Ranma, I've got to talk to my friends." Akane brushed off the stammered reply from Ranma, as well as the muttering about "uncute tomboy" - neither had any import to her at the moment.  
  
"More fun with your fiance, Akane?" Nabiki smirked at Akane's approach.  
  
"I don't understand that baka at all," grumbled Akane, who wanted to get on to more interesting subjects like why Yuka and Sayuri were here instead of waiting in their classroom for her.  
  
Ami considered for a moment. "Based on observation of subject: Ranma Saotome and my study of psychological data, I have compiled a general theory."  
  
"Oh?" Akane was fairly sure she knew what the superhero would say. Ranma was a jerk.  
  
"It appears he suffers from Attention Deficit Disorder, possibly from maltreatment as a child. Have you met his parents to determine if they were competent to raise a child?" Ami blinked at Akane.  
  
Akane was about to give a quick and nasty answer when she thought about it. Genma as a parent? Not something that *she* would have wanted, that's for sure.  
  
"Actually, Ami," put in Nabiki, "I'm pretty sure that he grew up with only his father as an example of affection. Considering how Genma treats Ranma, I'd think that he'd use insults and fighting as terms of endearment simply because he doesn't know any better." That Nabiki had her own agenda (getting Ranma + Akane together) was beside the point.  
  
Akane went into deeper thought as *that* registered. Did he insult anyone else like he did her?  
  
"Oh well, see you all at the concert, we've got to get to class!" Yuka bowed to her new friends and turned away.  
  
"'Concert'?" Akane blinked, tabling that thought for later.  
  
"We're having a debut concert immediately after school," indicated Ami, herself walking away to class. "There are signs near the school exits."  
  
"It was Minako's idea," apologized Usagi over her shoulder.  
  
Akane continued to ponder until the school bell let her know that the time for such things had passed.  
  
--------  
  
"They came to caverns dark and cold,  
Eight Soldiers strong and bold,  
In battle did they fall one by one,  
Though at the end, they had won,  
Last was left the Princess Of Light,  
Who focussed forth her arcane might,  
To rewrite their time was her intent,  
Yet at the end her thoughts were bent,  
Between today and tomorrow they rest,  
Eight Soldiers bold who did their best,  
Their sands suspended now in place,  
Until they're brought about to face."  
  
Greylle scowled. Typically cryptic results to a Legend Lore spell. Still, it confirmed some of what he knew. The Sailor Senshi - the soldiers. They came here to fight Beryl and her minions who were a lot better prepared for the Senshi due to Uranus and Neptune being a much more credible threat.  
  
Sailor Moon won after a long battle and seeing the rest of her team fall. Pretty much what he'd seen in a typical Sailor Moon timeline. As in the anime or most of the SM series timelines, she'd tried to give everyone back their normal pre-Beryl lives.  
  
Something had gone wrong. Thoughts bent? Resting overnight? Suspended in sand? Until brought to face? Face what?  
  
He hurt. Not only his head and chest but everwhere else as well. Nor had he been able to get the blasted Ginzuishou to get out of his chest. Changing form to human had revealed a glimmering bit of crystal about halfway up the sternum. So removing the source of his pain - the Silver Crystal wasn't likely to happen anytime soon.  
  
Greylle finally climbed out of the cavern, spread wings, and began flying back to the ship. Sleeping on the trip back *might* help him get a handle on this. It was doubtful he could learn anything more here at any rate.  
  
------------  
  
Mamoru Chiba and Artemis had chosen different approaches to Furinkan High School as part of a plan. By seperating they covered more ground.  
  
Doctor Kumori Mizuno didn't know anything about Mamoru or the cat also being after the same thing. She just noted the boy looked vaguely familiar and continued looking for a sign of her daughter.  
  
Mamoru asked directions from one of the girls, if she had seen one "Usagi Tsukino" - he was directed towards the auditorium where she herself was heading.  
  
Doctor Mizuno did the same with the same results.  
  
All three ended up, therefore, at the same auditorium at the same time. Just occupying different parts of the crowd. And it was a crowd, practically everyone from students to faculty was there.  
  
"Hi, everybody!" A girl with a pageboy haircut held a microphone as she stood on the edge of the stage. "This is just a debut and sort of a practice as they get an idea of how best to package themselves! I'm Nabiki Tendo (as if none of you knew) and the group still is working out a name for their band. Here we go!" Nabiki leapt off the stage, easily clearing 30 ft to land with precision in a small cleared area held by her friends.  
  
Doctor Mizuno blinked at that impossible leap. How had she managed that? Theatrical magic or wires?  
  
A girl's voice began from the darkened stage.  
"Time, time, time...  
See what's become of me..."  
  
A lone electric guitar began playing, fast and furious. A single spotlight shone on the player.  
  
Mamoru blinked. That was Minako?! Playing an electric guitar and playing it very well.  
  
"Time, time, time, see what's become of me."  
While I looked around for my possibilities,  
I was so hard to please,  
Lookaround  
Leaves are brown  
And the sky is a hazy shade of winter."  
  
As they played a faster and more metallic version of "Hazy Shade Of Winter", spotlights came down to illuminate each of the girls on stage in their turn until the whole stage was lit.  
  
Usagi was on drums, oddly enough. Makoto playing the bass. Ami on a synthesizer. Rei had a trumpet in her hands but was currently just singing with the others. That looked sort of like Sailor Neptune, Sailor Uranus, and Sailor Pluto in the back. Minako was apparently content with lead guitar.  
  
If Artemis' jaw could drop any further it would have disengaged entirely from his face.  
  
Doctor Mizuno's gaze never left her daughter. That looked *exactly* like Ami, dressed like Ami, but the song was definitely *not* Ami's style. Ami also looked preoccupied though it could be because this was some sort of debut: their first time playing in public?  
  
They finished "Hazy Shade Of Winter" then cut to Rei being the primary singer.  
  
Ami began by playing the synthesizer as a piano. Minako then went with the guitar. Usagi set up a simple beat.  
  
"One two three c'mon,  
You're not the only one who's lonely,  
Try sitting on the crescent moon,  
The dreams we had as children  
Are still bright, like shining stars,  
Ride on and never give up,  
No matter how sad or difficult things become,  
Ride on!  
Wind, kiss me,  
Sky, hold me,  
And protect us always..."  
  
A few in the crowd recognized a song from "Bubblegum Crisis" and shared that information with their neighbors. Naturally not with either Mamoru, Artemis, nor Doctor Mizuno.  
  
Minako returned to the front and addressed the crowd. "Thanks everyone! We're just getting started! What did you think?"  
  
Cheers responded, brightening Minako's smile and causing her to bounce around a little.  
  
"They like me! They really like me!" Minako finished bouncing around and cued the group to begin another song.  
  
"Goddess on a mountaintop,  
Burning like a silver flame,  
The summit of beauty and love,  
And Venus was her name..."  
  
The marionettes were briefly joined by two members of the crowd (one enthusiastically, the other quite obviously very reluctant) after they finished "Venus" and began Aerosmith's "Rag Doll".  
  
Artemis began making his way through the crowd towards the stage area.  
  
"Everyone! Thank you for coming!" Minako bounced around a little more while waving. "Thank you!"  
  
Both Mamoru and Ami's mother began making their own way towards the backstage.  
  
--------  
  
Most beagles would not be able to pilot a trans-sonic aircraft.  
  
Most beagles did not have ways of directly accessing on-line systems so as to dim the lighting for their exhausted passengers.   
  
Snoopy, being an android beagle with several skill templates, was not like most beagles.  
  
There was the WWI Flying Ace (who could also operate anything from a hang glider to an X-Wing, but who insisted that all one really needed was a Sopwith Camel), there was Joe Cool, there was the Soldier of Le Legion Etranger, and quite a few others.   
  
Because he was *not* a typical beagle, he could register the presence of a forming dimensional aperature.  
  
Lights came back up. "Wurf wuf."  
  
Greylle groaned. "You know, i gave you a full speech synthesizer, you don't have to remain in character."  
  
"Greylle Shard, Penitent Dragon, Silver Breed," came a voice into the vehicle.  
  
"Yeah," Greylle said after a moment. "Peorth?"  
  
"Dang, this must be a *really* bad connection. No, it's Ed. You're not exactly paying any attention to the mission, are you?"  
  
"C'mon. Play Akane Tendo's boyfriend in a near-mainline Ranmaverse that has Sailor Moon subelements? With the Senshi missing and the timeframe about where the Doom Tree story starts?" Greylle rolled his eyes. "And everyone knows darn well that i can't STAND Akane Tendo."  
  
"...she's not *that* bad."  
  
"Look, ignore the fact that she's flatchested and a tomboy. You know darn well that neither matters to me one whit. Or that pairing up an emotionally retarded abused child like Ranma with a rage disorder violence prone girl who ignores everything that might make her uncomfortable but unable to target her usual victim is just plain wrong. Ignore those for the moment. This is someone who responds to affection with violence, this is someone with zero capacity for trust, a hair trigger temper, a near infinite wellspring of denial, and who demands that the world cater to HER whims. My lord, she goes into jealous rages and then misdirects the target!"  
  
"...she's not *that* bad," repeated Ed.  
  
"Ed, i'm a dragon and therefore not exactly Hikaru Gosunkugi. How long do you think i'd last in an actual relationship with her?" Greylle waited a moment. "How long before she blew up at me one time too often and i responded with a dragonrage?"  
  
"Before after Ryouga kills her?"  
  
Greylle blinked. "What? This connection is really bad."  
  
"Well, it's just that while you're setting up the Cyberdyne Corporation and building those Cyberdolls, and while you're running around with ersatz Senshi and the Ginzuishou, you've put a few extra ripples in the timeline. Well, so has Amaterasu but she's just raising Hotaru right now."  
  
"Hotaru? That was on my 'to do' list," remarked Greylle. "Snoopy, will you mark through that one?"  
  
"Woof!"  
  
Greylle addressed the rippling pinpoint of light. "What kind of ripples? Other than Genma apparently turns into a monster, Ranma turns into a catgirl, and the Senshi are apparently dead."  
  
"Well, they're not dead. You've got the clues. I can't give you all the details. Just wanted to warn you that without your intervention, in fifteen minutes Ryouga will start fighting Ranma again, and Akane Tendo will be killed in the battle."  
  
Greylle twitched. "The logical thing would be for me to let her die. That way she wouldn't be a problem, and i could concentrate on the more important things."  
  
"Except that you won't," the voice sounded amused. "I've done all I can. Ed out."  
  
Watching the pinpoint flare out, Greylle muttered to no one in particular. "I think I prefer it when all he's saying is 'pika pi pikachu' or something to that extent."  
  
"Woof."  
  
"Snoopy, how long before we reach Tokyo?"   
  
"Rrrr-woof." [One hour, forty seven minutes.]  
  
Greylle sighed deeply and sat down at the co-pilot's area. Picking up a handset he punched a button. "Workspider? Oh, hello, Rei. Need you to prep that healing tank, prepare it for a critical case in fourteen minutes. Contact Ami, tell her to look for a battle. There's going to be at least one casualty."  
  
----------  
  
A section of the school's outer wall collapsed and a figure strode through. "RANMA! AT LAST!"   
  
Ranma was not happy. The last time Ryouga had crossed paths with him, someone *had* died. "RYOUGA! PREPARE TO DIE!"  
  
"Huh?!" Ryouga stopped in his rush forward. Wasn't that *his* line?  
  
"BECAUSE OF YOU, I HAVE SEEN HELL!"  
  
"What?" Ryouga shook off this odd feeling of deja vu. "Waitaminute!"  
  
"Excuse me! Ranma! This is *my* fight."  
  
Ranma blinked. Ryouga blinked.   
  
Nabiki walked forward, smirking. "Ryouga. Thanks to *you*, I died. I didn't like it. It hurt a *lot*. Even if it wasn't permanent and I gained some serious insights into the nature of reality."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Nabiki engaged Flight Mode to shoot across the intervening distance, smirk still in place. She was Nabiki the Supergal!  
  
Ryouga was uncertain of how to handle this situation. A girl attacking him? He wasn't sure how to even handle a girl *talking* to him!  
  
*Kick!*   
  
Ranma watched Ryouga go flying off, propelled by one of Nabiki's kicks.   
  
Nabiki was grinning. "Uncouth. Unsubtle. But enormously satisfying. I'll be sorry to give this up."  
  
Ranma considered the grinning girl. "That augmentation stuff is kinda handy, but it ain't real."  
  
"Well, it's actually pretty real. Just temporary." Nabiki went silent for a moment. Her current cyborg parts had been just altered from existing spares and thrown together at the spur of the moment. What could they have accomplished if they'd had more time?  
  
Ranma eyed where Ryouga had gone. "If I don't put an end to this, he's just gonna come back."  
  
"True enough." Nabiki shrugged. "Better resolve this today, Saotome."  
  
---------  
  
Cologne stared. The boy fit the description of one of Shampoo's airen. Bloodlines being important: Shampoo could only keep one, but she'd been young once herself and Cologne could understand her great granddaughter's desire to keep both.  
  
The *girl* however. Flying girls were uncommon to say the least and her ki flows were quite odd.  
  
The Amazon matriarch started following the pigtailed lad. She'd check into the mysterious girl (who didn't move like a martial artist but obviously had some serious strength) later.  
  
Oh, and that was interesting. There was some other girl following the pigtailed boy as well.   
  
---------  
  
"Usako!"  
  
"My name is Usagi Tsukino," corrected Usagi.  
  
Mamoru caught his breath and examined the girl before him. She *looked* like Usagi. Except for being slightly taller, more developed in the chest, and carrying herself a *lot* different. "Don't you remember me, meatball-head?"  
  
Usagi cocked her head slightly to regard him. She searched datafiles looking for a matchup. Nothing. "No. Are you a Furinkan student?"  
  
"No... What happened in the fight with Beryl, Usagi?"  
  
"I have not been briefed on that yet," responded the marionette. "You know about that?"  
  
"Yes, I was left behind with the cats."  
  
Usagi considered. She had not been briefed on cats either. "I will have to consult with the Master before further information can be given."  
  
Mamoru reacted as if struck. "...'master'?!"  
  
"Yes, the Master has requested that I not give potentially classified information out without verification from him." Usagi nodded and smiled at the strange fellow.  
  
Steam could not possibly have come jetting out of Mamoru Chiba's ears. "A... master?!"  
  
"Excuse me, I've got to get going, I've just received a Recall signal," Usagi said, wondering what this stranger's problem was. Then she just kicked in her Flight mode and accelerated from 0-60kph in 3 seconds.  
  
The sometimes Tuxedo Kamen's jaw dropped as Usagi flew away at a high rate of speed. FLEW not jumped or ran.  
  
One thing was obvious to Mamoru Chiba, however. He had to find this Master and free Usagi (and the other Senshi) from his nefarious mind control.   
  
Now why did he have this sudden urge to grab a bokken?  
  
--------  
  
Artemis stared as Minako flew away, then wandered off himself while thinking about their odd conversation.  
  
Minako had not mangled lyrics or sung badly. In fact, she'd been quite good even if Artemis normally preferred his music less loud and of a slower tempo.  
  
She had been calm and polite even while surprised to see a talking cat. She had not recognized him in the slightest. She had wondered aloud how he could speak Japanese so well with feline mouth parts, which she apparently did not think suited to the task.  
  
He had been thinking some evil form of mind control up until she flew away.  
  
Evil mind control he could see. The Dark Kingdom had done that thing to Endymion's Generals after all, and more recently to Endymion/Tuxedo Mask/Mamoru himself. He hadn't detected any evil energies or darkness taint, however. He also hadn't detected much of anything like a Senshi identity. There had been *something* of that latter, but it was so elusive he couldn't be sure.  
  
Empowering her to be able to effortlessly fly like that?! And at that speed?  
  
Maybe it wasn't Dark Kingdom but some other enemy? But then why had Minako seemed so peaceful and content? He'd expect her to be suffering under mind control.  
  
The mooncat started looking for Mamoru. Better that he spy on things before they went off half-cocked.  
  
-------  
  
With Ami it had gone a little different.  
  
Doctor Mizuno had approached the girl with some confusion. On some levels this *was* her daughter, but a lot of nagging details said this was a stranger. "Ami, don't you recognize your own mother?"  
  
Ami considered the woman who had pursued her. Engram recordings didn't provide much data, but there was a physical resemblence. The hospital tag read "Mizuno" and there was something in her file about the Original's mother being a doctor. Therefore there was a good chance that this was the original Ami Mizuno's mother. Secondary evidence was a physical map between her own structure and that of the woman questioning her. Allowing for different ages and the male genetic donor's influence, there was a good result.   
  
Ami smiled and bowed. "Honored sensei. I am not the Ami Mizuno whom you parented."  
  
Doctor Mizuno stopped at that. The wording was quite odd. "Then you are?"  
  
Ami checked protocols and determined a high probability that permission would be granted. One of the operational protocols did not require further revelations regarding the Moon Kingdom or hidden underground bases. "I am a decoy, Mizuno-sensei. It is believed that your daughter was specifically targetted by one of the youma operating in the Azabu Juuban district along with her friends?"  
  
The doctor nodded, that had been supposition which had been floating about though nobody had come up with a likely reason for some of the students targetted. Then her eyes widened as she made connections. "You're to draw them out when they come after you?"  
  
Ami nodded, glad to be dealing with someone slightly more mentally agile than those she normally associated with (ie: high school girls). "If these forces are still operating. Current data indicates that they may not but we are still investigating leads."  
  
Doctor Mizuno nodded, fitting more together. This girl looked almost identical to Ami. She was a little older though, maybe 16 or 17, and there was something "off" about the eyes. Possibly she was wearing contacts. Since she'd stated that she was involved in an investigation, and something of her manner indicated that she was a professional of some kind, it was easy to fill in the blanks. The investigation at the level of the police had died out, as far as public information was concerned. They were still investigating it at a higher level, obviously.   
  
What the pediatrician *said* however was: "Is there anything I can do to help?"  
  
Ami considered that for a moment. "May I contact you at your hospital? I have to check with my Commander but it may be useful to relocate into your area briefly. I'm sure there are details that have yet to be entered into my database."  
  
The doctor nodded. "Yes. I work a variety of shifts but I can usually be contacted or messages forwarded. Just ask for Doctor Mizuno."  
  
"Thank you," said Ami before turning to walk away.  
  
The doctor watched her daughter's double walk off, turn a corner under a fire escape, and then apparently vanish. Walking swiftly, she checked out the corner. No exits. No place to hide. Examining closer found a set of seams which didn't quite fit and a single emblem hidden away where a casual search couldn't find it.  
  
"AEGIS?!" Doctor Mizuno breathed. "They're still operating? Oh, Ami, what *were* you involved in?"  
  
-----------  
  
Akane Tendo, Heir of the Tendo School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, knew how to find Ranma & Ryouga.  
  
Plume of dust and smoke: check.  
Sounds of extreme violence: check.  
Old mummy roof hopping: che... say what?!  
  
Akane blinked, not really sure if she'd seen that.   
  
Nonetheless there was the sound of flesh meeting flesh, one body being thrown through a wall, followed by more flesh-on-flesh and then the sound of items not normally considered fragile being reduced to rubble.  
  
Which led Akane directly to where a sopping-wet Ryouga was pulling himself out of a canal in order to go at his opponent once again.  
  
"You two stop it!" Akane yelled, running forward. "Look at all the damage you're doing!"  
  
"But Akane..." Ranma turned to deal with the girl running up to him.  
  
Ryouga saw the opening. His belt was stiffened with a snap, then hurled forward. Ranma would pay for the insult of the bread, all the time Ryouga had spent in China, and the problems that had occurred when he had accidently found that women's bath in that quaint little Chinese village!   
  
Ranma used Iron Cloth on a previously thrown bandana to deflect the belt. "Get out of here, stupid! It's dangerous!"  
  
"You two have to stop this!" Akane pointed to the gas station. "What do you think is going to happen if you two continue to fight like this? Don't you remember what happened when you fought at the school?"  
  
"You want to convince RYOUGA of that?"  
  
Akane was convinced that there was only one way to stop the fight now. Knock Ranma out. It was her privledge as a fiancee right? Akane picked up a piece of canal railing that had been cut free by flying bandanas and strode forward. Ranma stepped back.  
  
*SCHLUK!*  
  
"Oh HELL," said Ranma with a great deal of feeling. Not only was this disgusting, but he just KNEW how Mister Tendo would deal with this latest development.  
  
Ryouga stared. Ranma was *still* getting innocent girls involved in their fights! That cad!  
  
Akane managed to blink. She was aware to some extent and had heard the stories about how during the French Revolution some of the guillotine victims had been aware for over a minute before the blood loss finally caused them to die.  
  
Cologne shook her head. Terrible loss, but there was only so much that even a Chinese Amazon could do. Restoring the girl's head to her body wasn't possible.  
  
Ranma finally got his brain in gear, unfortunately the wrong one. He rushed Akane's body towards the gas station, intending to call an ambulance. Also unfortunately, Akane's head bounced off and into the canal.  
  
"RANMA! YOU CAN'T RUN AWAY!" Ryouga tried to go around the section of canal keeping him seperated from Ranma. Unfortunately, that involved losing direct line of sight with Ranma. "Where the heck did you go, you coward?!"  
  
Usagi Tsukino flitted down, touching lightly on the waters of the canal as she pulled something out, then flew off with it.  
  
Ranma came back, aware that the girl's head was missing now. "Akane?! Oh... shit."  
  
Cologne watched the flying girl disappear in the distance. Now THIS was getting interesting. She had had no idea that life outside the village had changed so much. Hmmmm.  
  
-----------  
  
Looking around the school, Kumori Mizuno reviewed what she knew about the hidden organization.  
  
AEGIS (Alien Exterminating Global Intercept System) had operated from just after WWII (some whispered that WWII had actually been instigated by the Invaders) until the 70s. A hidden organization whose purpose had been to stop alien invasions in the same tradition as its predecessor with the turn of the century demonic forces had done.  
  
This made sense. Now it was *this* generation's turn, and AEGIS was now handing off to a new group of defenders. The "Floral League" gave way to the "Gatekeepers" who gave way to the now vanished "Sailor Senshi" and now some new group.  
  
Her own involvement with AEGIS had been minor. In tests she'd been able to access Gate power, but only with difficulty and briefly. Not enough to become a Gatekeeper. It'd helped get her into college though, so it *had* worked out for her to associate with AEGIS at the time.  
  
So Ami's double was working for AEGIS and the precursor of the American "Men In Black" (she had seen the movie and thought it a clever way for those same people to prove they didn't actually exist by depicting themselves as merely cinematic fancy) was involved in the youma and the missing girls.  
  
Whether Ami was alive or not, neither they nor she knew. She did know one thing on the subject. These people were trying to draw the kidnappers out, therefore Doctor Mizuno would assist as best she could.  
  
Though it was curious, the girl she'd spoken to had some of Ami's mannerisms down exactly, and others had completely escaped her. More, the impression she had gotten was of "nesting dolls" as if there was truly her daughter there but behind layers of someone else.  
  
Still, there was one more thing to do. Secrets or not, she had made promises. Any information she received would be shared with some of the other parents and guardians. She would just have to avoid naming AEGIS and mention only that it was a high level and secret government operation that she'd stumbled upon.  
  
Kumori looked up as a yellow submarine flew overhead and began its descent towards the pool. Maybe she ought to consider a brief vacation from work, she had enough accrued time.  
  
----------  
  
The Yellow Submarine entered through the pool access (the Tokyo Canal access tunnels were still under construction) despite picking up a few hitchikers in the process.  
  
Nabiki had taken one look at Ranma, heard of the loss of Akane's head, and had high-tailed it to the pool to try and figure out how to contact Greylle. If he could bring *her* back, then surely he could bring Akane back.  
  
Kasumi had accompanied Nabiki. Partly out of concern for Akane, partly because her father had gone completely bonkers on finding that not only had Ranma managed to get into fights that had killed two of his daughters but that during an odd moment Akane's body had vanished from the dojo, and partly because Mister Saotome had been eyeing her in his cursed form again. Nabiki had had to grab Kasumi with one arm and anchor herself to the sub with the other as Kasumi could not make the leap that was necessary.  
  
Ukyo, on the other hand, had other concerns. She'd pursued Ranma for years. However the thought of making friends with the gaijin who'd called her cute and gaining access to other markets (an important consideration for a fledgling businesswoman - selling okonomiyaki outside the baseball stadiums would make her a tidy profit even allowing for the kickback to the franchise) was fairly compelling.   
  
Shampoo was following her great grandmother.  
  
Cologne was fascinated by this whole thing and packed an old fashioned bathing suit when it became obvious how they would access this hidden base. Which meant that she was the only one of the group of hitchhikers who was actually prepared for what came immediately thereafter.  
  
Nabiki and Kasumi had both been quite distracted by the image of the headless Akane and failed to realize until the water hit that Nabiki still hadn't managed to access her forcefield capabilities. Fortunately, she *was* waterproof to depths of 250ft. Ukyo just tried to get inside but found the door was locked and simply braced herself for the rush of water when it was obvious that her plan had not worked out. Shampoo was still trying to figure out a way she could claim both airen despite Amazon Laws meant to keep track of family lines.  
  
*SPLOOOSH!*  
  
The chamber was filled with water for 1.5 minutes.   
  
Nabiki's oxygen cell kicked in and she had no problems other than Kasumi shaking her frantically.  
  
Kasumi had taken a deep breath but her usual calm was getting a bit shaky before the air pumped in and the water pumped out of the chamber. Okay a lot shaky. Especially as she had just realized where Akane's body had disappeared to and hadn't been able to suppress an "oh my" even while underwater.  
  
Ukyo and Shampoo weathered the time without air even more panicked than Kasumi. This was mainly because Shampoo had let go of the sub and had gotten sucked into one of the drainage pipes, grabbing Ukyo as she went.  
  
Cologne watched her great granddaughter yank that chef girl off the sub with her and get lodged in a mass of flailing limbs and hair inside one of the tubes. Tsk. Well at least Shampoo got along with these outsiders as odd as *that* was.  
  
The waters receded despite one of the three tubes being clogged.  
  
"...check on that rattling noise, will you?" Greylle exited the hatch and flipped to the walkway, then ran for the doors which hissed open in front of him and then shut behind him.  
  
"..." Kasumi managed to evoke an image of a nearly drowned kitten.  
  
"Spatula girl get leg out of Shampoo's sleeve!"  
  
"Ugh! Don't flail like that! And get your hair out of my face!"  
  
Cologne was en route to keep either from hurting themselves trying to untangle when the door opened again and even a 300 year old Amazon Elder could be forgiven for taking a step back in alarm at the figure that entered the room.  
  
The giant mechanical spider trundled over to the plugged drainage tunnel and seemed to consider the two "foreign bodies" lodged within.  
  
Cologne edged to the side to regard the thing before her. A machine, definitely. Something in its body language seemed puzzled, which was unexpected.  
  
"Workspider," said Nabiki, sloshing (her clothes were rather sodden) up. "That *is* you, isn't it?"  
  
"Identity: Nabiki Tendo. Confirmed. Identity: Kasumi Tendo. Confirmed. Identity: Shampoo. Confirmed. Self-Identification: Workspider-03. Please identify others."  
  
"This is a machine and not a remotely operated device?" Cologne had thought just being a remote had numerous applications, but if it was an independently operating machine the mind boggled at the possibilities. She spotted several breaking points, and so wasn't worried *that* much, but could see where a few of these things could take on most of her village and raze it to the ground. Or become nearly unstoppable guards FOR the village.  
  
"Self is a Type III Artificial Intelligence. Remote operation is possible but not required."  
  
"The girl with Shampoo is Ukyo Kuonji. I don't know the elderly lady." Nabiki decided against charging Workspider-03 for the information. She could always explain the concept of relative value and price later. Of course, by *that* definition she was already in the red by a considerable margin just for bringing her back from the dead.  
  
"I am Shampoo's great-grandmother, Cologne. Elder Matriarch of the Amazon Tribe of the Nichieju Village." Cologne began looking over the machine in greater detail now. Buzzsaws, welding apparatus, pincers, what looked like drilling and excavating ends, each "leg" terminating in something resembling a Swiss Army Knife. "You are not a combat model primarily are you?"  
  
"Negative. Workspider series are noncombat models. Primary purpose: construction/repair." The machine paused briefly as it scanned bodies and transmitted their dimensions to the central computers. "Dry clothes are being manufactured. Welcome to Cyberdyne Corporation."  
  
--------  
  
Greylle had been preoccupied to such a degree that he hadn't noticed the presence of the girls other than to dispatch a Workspider to check into the drainage problem.  
  
He *did* notice the extra tunnels and extra marionettes running about, along with a few extra robots and that one of the Automatic Response Neural Intelligence Enforcers (ARNIE units) had been nearly finished and was on a "guard" position.  
  
"Ve haff visitors," said the ARNIE in a thick Bavarian accent as Greylle stopped and looked inquiringly at him.  
  
Greylle nodded and dashed into the room which housed the healing chamber that had been used for Nabiki.  
  
Seeing Akane's bodiless head floating in the tank with a crewcut was indication of how badly things had gone in his absence. "Status?"  
  
Ami looked up from a display. "Brain activity is at minimal level despite nutrients and oxygen being supplied directly. Artificial blood is being circulated to replace that lost prior to rescue. We have been unable to locate the body."  
  
"In other words she's dead and the body is missing," Greylle summed up. "Even though you've got her living neural tissue. Her soul probably went out, Nabiki's did after all. So i'll need to bring it back so that she shows at least what passes for higher functions for her." He frowned then, he didn't usually intend cruelty but this *was* Akane. Just because he didn't see her ghost wandering around didn't mean she might not be around still. "Okay. Keep her stable. i'll contact her spirit and guide her back."  
  
"What of the visitors?"  
  
"i'll have to change clothes and return. Show 'em around, i suppose. And DON'T show them my hoard area!"  
  
------------  
  
The device they had been led to was *very* odd. Workspider-03 had explained that it was based on the standards of beauty shown in movies, advertisements, and television - forming a comparitive database that then scanned the individual and used various technologies such as matter transfiguration to perform an "instant day spa" and would even clothe the individual to specification.  
  
Everyone had been nervous about it, but eventually Kasumi's decided lack of enthusiasm for remaining in sopping wet clothing forced her to be the first.  
  
Fifteen seconds later, she got up out of the "coffin" and managed a weak "Can I go again?"  
  
Everyone else gawked (except Workspider-03 of course) at the change.  
  
Kasumi's hair shone. Split ends had been repaired. Her hair had been treated down to the molecular level to make it clean, healthy, and add a shine and "spun silk" texture that the household budget's cheap shampoos and conditioners could not begin to approach. Her skin likewise had been defoliated, cleansed, repaired, smoothed, softened, and moisturized. She'd gotten a manicure, a pedicure, a health checkup and minor ills repaired down to the genetic level. As it had been Japanese TV and movies scanned: the makeup was subtle enough to be largely overlooked if one wasn't examining her in minute detail.  
  
The eldest Tendo daughter had been aware of all this, and the feeling of hundreds of invisible hands grooming and massaging her had been quite... interesting. At the moment she felt more pampered and glamorous than she ever had in her life.  
  
Everyone else was aware that Kasumi practically glowed with health and had a mysteriously pleased smile on her face. She was also wearing a very nice and expensive looking kimono.  
  
Her original clothing was ejected from another section of the machine a moment later, looking laundered and repaired.   
  
"Well, uhm, I guess I'll give it a try," said Nabiki, only to find her path blocked a moment later.  
  
"Nah, sugah, Ah think those cyborg parts of yours might gunk this here machine up. I'll just give it a spin first."  
  
"Shampoo think Spatula Girl must have hit head. Is only right for Chinese Amazon go next."  
  
Cologne sighed as the three started bickering. She didn't particularly trust the gadget herself and was content to wring out her Matriarch robes by hand.  
  
---------  
  
She had made a mistake early on in confronting the birds. She had made another mistake by looking them in their eyes.  
  
Their wings were black and diseased, foul and oily. Bits of skeleton showed on their main body and in their legs, but the most horrible thing was their heads. To be more precise it was that they wore her face.  
  
The birds circled, the others darting in and slashing at her as she tried to confront one.  
  
Akane was feeling weak and hurt, and knew that she couldn't keep dodging for long.  
  
"ENOUGH!"   
  
A presence strode up to her and caused the birds to back up. Akane looked up and saw that it was the gaijin. "Y-y-you?!"  
  
"Akane, these are your own personal demons, they can only harm you if you let them."   
  
"What?! But I..." Akane looked out at the *things* with her face. One of them snapped teeth that belonged on a shark or similar predator.  
  
"Everyone has them," continued Greylle. He had been tempted to leave Akane, knowing full well that eventually she would notice that they were trying to keep her from noticing the Light. Once she entered the light, she would Pass On. However, he had to give her that option, he couldn't just leave her to suffer. "Everyone has their little inner demons. Well, most of us. Self-doubt, pride, hate, that big one over there is your jealousy and that other one is your rage, that smaller one is fear. They are simply keeping you from the Light."  
  
"The Light?" Akane asked, puzzled, but then realized that there was something *there*. Once she looked for it, it was hard to see how she had missed it before.  
  
"Akane, are you sure you want to enter the Light?"  
  
Akane stopped and realized she'd been moving towards it. "I... it's just that..."  
  
"i know. And there is peace and tranquility in the Light. i am here to offer you an alternative." Greylle held out a hand.  
  
"...but I'm dead."  
  
"So was Nabiki," pointed out Greylle to the translucent Akane. "You can go into the Light and pass from the living. There is joy and peace and tranquility in the Light if you embrace it and leave your personal demons behind. In life there is both joy and pain, suffering and contentment, love and hate. They don't even always balance out. Yet if you want to return to the living, i am here to guide you back."  
  
Akane looked up at the figure of the baseball player, noting that he was wearing an odd sort of priestly vestment. While she was... "EEEEEEK!"  
  
Greylle manifested a spectral sweatdrop simply because he could and felt it was appropriate. "Akane, that is your astral body. You don't have to be naked. Just imagine yourself clothed."  
  
Akane flickered in and out of several outfits as she tried to concentrate on something.   
  
"Oh for crying out loud. We don't have time for this, Akane. If you don't return soon, you might as well go into the Light or go back to fighting THEM."   
  
"But my body... I mean, my HEAD was cut off! How can I... a cyborg body?"  
  
"That's one option, yes. It's not the only one." Greylle sighed. "The equipment to fastclone and regenerate a normal human body isn't there, but it appears Minako and Usagi ran across a record for a genetic reconstruction chamber."  
  
Greylle finished pointing the way, watching the indecision in Akane's face, then glanced over to the side.  
  
Here between Life and Death he could sense something. More than one something. Over there was a presence, though muffled. Over there was a spark of light. And over there was Power.   
  
Lots of Power. Something way beyond most of the beings he'd met or associated with recently. More Power than the gem currently burning in his chest beneath the hakama. Concealed but still there.  
  
Greylle marked the locations as best he could without landmarks and turned back to where Akane was still wrestling with her decision.  
  
--------  
  
Hotaru wasn't sure about all this "shrine priestess" stuff.   
  
It was better than being possessed by a daimonic bring that was trying to bring about the Silence. That wasn't the problem.  
  
All these Zen koans and riddles and prayer and sweeping steps and things of that nature made it all a bit strange to say the least.  
  
But then, she also had to admit that most miko likely didn't come under *quite* the amount of scrutiny she did. Hotaru suspected that most shrine priestesses didn't end up with their sacred mirror advising them to wash behind the ears and take better care sweeping those stepping stones leading to the shrine.  
  
Nor did they generally arrange for their miko to be engaged to gaijin.  
  
Of course, the up side of this was that they also generally didn't start teaching their miko spells.  
  
It felt sort of "off" but was becoming easier as she practiced. So far all she could do was these "orisons" but she could do them pretty well.  
  
The promise of advanced weapons training and martial arts practice, however, was concerning.  
  
--------  
  
Greylle went to take a shower. He didn't feel the cold the way he had prior to being a transformed dragon, but it always let him feel a little refreshed at least. Besides, it looked like Akane was still vacillating on what she wanted to be until the regenerator was finished.  
  
He had to admit the bathing area was *nice* if a little strange. He'd have to find out which marionette had handled the design (all he'd done was a basic floorplan and label areas as being bath, repair bay, medical facility, cafeteria, power plant, and such) and compliment her.   
  
The bath couldn't decide if it was trying to be Japanese or Greco-Roman. Maybe when it was finished. Areas had been marked for statues and the tiling hadn't nearly been finished.  
  
Which was why he was using a private shower stall off his smaller human-sized living quarters. It was getting late though and he had a lot to think about. Those odd bits of power he'd glimpsed. One a distant large lump of cotton, or so it had felt. Then the spark as if hot from a forge, but he'd understood that one a bit better- someone had a line access active to the Heavenly Planes. That was close and probably the safest of the three to investigate.  
  
Then that big lump of Power. Hidden: one could only sense it from the known as Tweenspace. (Which was to say that it was in between everything, not even fully in the Astral Plane or Ethereal, a thin slice of nowhere.) Even there it had been like viewing it through a diffraction grating, had he been any further out he wouldn't have been able to sense it at all.  
  
He just had so bloody much to do!  
  
*Shooosh!*  
  
"...and here we have Shard-sama's private shower stall. You may notice by the control dial that it is capable of putting out any temperature from boiling to near-freezing. And over here..."   
  
Greylle hung his head for a moment.  
  
"Oh my!"  
  
"Hmmmm. I wonder if I've got a record function with these bionic eyes. Let's see..."  
  
"Shampoo, you're drooling. Comport yourself like an Amazon."  
  
"Comport?"  
  
"Ain't no way, sugah, Ah've seen those leaping glomps you've done on Ranma-honey. We ought to give the man some dignity."  
  
"Spatula Girl staring pretty hard herself."  
  
Greylle decided to rest his forehead against the cool tile, incidently turning his back towards the voyeurs.  
  
"Gotta say, he's got a cute butt."  
  
"Better than boys in village. Don't you think, great grandmama?"  
  
"Perhaps, child. Though it is his ki level that intrigues me."  
  
"Hmmm. Thermal scan. Ultraviolet. Infrared. Nope. No recording. Pity. Oh. That's neat, I can filter out the mist from the shower. Hmmmmm!"  
  
"Oh my. Oh my. This isn't proper."  
  
"Nice girl say that but Shampoo notice she still here."  
  
"Excuse me," came a new voice. Ami squeezed through the crowd and tapped on Greylle's shoulder. "Excuse me. I have a report here regarding recent developments dealing with a hyperdimensional summoning spell which had white band markings and... what is that?"  
  
Greylle momentarily glared at Ami. "Access your files on basic male anatomy. It's in there!"  
  
Ami glanced over the boy. Hmmm. Some comment was probably needed at this point. "Yes, very nice. I was referring to the gemstone imbedded in your chest."  
  
"Later. AND WOULD SOMEONE CLOSE THAT DOOR!"  
  
----------  
  
Akane drifted ghostlike through the walls. This was interesting. She could see lots of machines, whose purposes she didn't understand at all.  
  
There were eight androids who seemed to have special glows about them. Then there were some non human non female robots. None of which interested Akane that much. Why couldn't he build any cute and fluffy androids?  
  
She didn't understand a lot of things about this place.  
  
It was weird how calm she was while floating without a body. Well, maybe it was just plain weird.  
  
Why was Kasumi wearing a formal kimono and why was she all made up like that? She also seemed happy but distracted. Pretty much normal though a bit more intense on both.   
  
Why was Nabiki wearing such very odd clothing? A maid's outfit, including the frilly little cap. Like Kasumi she looked expertly made up for a night on the town. Maybe there was a costume party? Though that seemed more Nabiki's speed than Kasumi's.  
  
Akane thought Shampoo's clothing was a little more normal, well, normal for Shampoo. Skin tight black leotard-like outfit, including long sleeves, under a red happiko. A belt of rope that flared into a bow in the back. Two earrings that looked suitable as Christmas ornaments. Also sporting cherry-red lipstick and an otherwise understated makeup job.  
  
As for Ukyo, she could not currently be mistaken for a guy. That big spatula of hers hadn't been touched, but she was currently wearing a white blouse. A pair of dark shorts and matching suspenders. Long boots and karate style gloves.(1) Like the others, she was wearing makeup and her hair had been lightly styled and she looked *very* good, if a bit uncomfortable with her current garb.  
  
Oh and there was some kind of muppet-on-a-stick accompanying them. Very powerful aura.  
  
She left the tour group after floating around them and the only one who'd apparently sensed something different was the muppet. Something had told Akane that this was a dangerous situation, so she'd quietly left. No telling what would happen if she were exorcised or something.  
  
Akane flowed through one wall, slammed her nose into another wall (and made a note that some walls were more solid than others), and ducked through a third wall shortly thereafter. Finally she found who she was looking for. "Hey you! Why did you leave me..."  
  
Greylle looked around as he felt *something* that indicated his second attempt at a nice hot shower was being interrupted but he didn't see anything.  
  
Akane blushed so much that she resembled a neon sign briefly and tried to focus on something *besides* what she had just seen. Imagine the nerve of that pervert! Taking a shower in his own room where innocent girls could walk... Uhm. Nevermind.  
  
Still, *something* hadn't seemed right about that picture. Slowly Akane stuck her head back through the wall.  
  
Head up, eyes closed, letting the water strike the area between the shoulder blades. Greylle was trying to get in a private moment of relaxation.  
  
Akane stared. She'd taken the courses and knew the anatomy. Though she'd been extremely uncomfortable in the classroom with the subject and especially with the whispered comments around her. It looked *different* here, possibly because Shard-san was a gaijin? What was it? He was hairier, though the blonde hair tended to blend in with the skin a bit more than with the Japanese model. And apparently they'd picked a scrawny model for some reason. Taut waist, nice muscles, smooth tanned skin. This didn't look much like the model at all.  
  
Maybe it was that glimmer of white in the center of his chest?  
  
Greylle turned around and let the water slam into his chest, stretching his shoulders as he let the heat penetrate his front this time.  
  
The youngest daughter of Soun Tendo continued to stare for a moment, then briefly fled again. Not due to any hormonal fluctuation. She felt as calm and collected as the next person currently without hormones (or occupying what was left of their body) could be. That didn't mean you couldn't be heavily embarassed.  
  
Akane watched the little R2 unit roll across the corridor then stuck her head back in. Now it was safe and she could tell the inventor what she had decided to do.   
  
Except he was apparently asleep on the bed. Great.   
  
Akane reached out, intent on shaking this exasperating boy awake.  
  
(Contact)  
  
----------  
  
It had begun the first day of their trying to build the base.  
  
Greylle had been working on Workspider-01 (with 02 through 04 being developed) when Ami had shown that her developing AI was capable of working out problems more difficult than getting a TV working.  
  
She had asked what Greylle's long term goals were. The short-term was already on the planning board with the hidden base and hangar for a starship, their own construction to fill in for these Sailor Senshi while he looked for the original, and some other mission that he wouldn't reveal because it was "just so stupid" that he wouldn't talk about it. So Ami had tried the direct approach. What *were* the long term goals to accomplish?  
  
She'd later used their hand-connection ability to have a conversation with Usagi who had come up with an idea. The idea of Christmas and birthday presents had been developed from television, and apparently the surprise factor was an important part. A plan developed. When Rei had been built, she was given the initial task.  
  
Just as Akane was being beheaded, a large metal object that someone might have recognized as a set of three rusty truck trailers welded together by connecting pipes slowed to an orbit around a dusty red planet.   
  
Explosive bolts fired and one trailer remained in orbit where it would slowly fall towards the moon Deimos, which itself was a captured asteroid from a period three billion years past when Mars had been hammered by rather large rocks.   
  
The other two trailers, still linked, touched down on the Martian surface in a maze of canyons and cracks in the surface known as the Vallis Marineris. At which point the two AI within those trailers activated, opened the doors and began checking their surroundings.  
  
Workspider-02 checked servos and that the dust filtering outer covering had no rips or tears. Sealed latex and polycarbonate plating to keep dust from freezing joints.  
  
By the time Kasumi went in for her makeover, Mole-01 (not even as intelligent as a Workspider) had been unpacked and was happily digging a ten foot wide tunnel into the ground. Its internal furnaces were not yet at proper heat, so it was not smelting down the iron-rich soil into useful metal ingots which could then be turned into useful metal structures.  
  
By the time Akane had ducked back into the living quarters, Workspider-04 had already unpacked most of the fabrication equipment. Workspider-02 had just finished scouting nearby areas and had picked just the perfect area for where the greenhouses would sit. Tectonically stable, plenty of sand nearby to fuse into glass, and break-winds could be constructed to help protect them from the 300mph storms that could build up in the area.  
  
By the time that Akane had realized that she was currently bodiless and that trying to shake someone was going to be futile, Mole-01's tunnel had collapsed on top of it but that was only a temporary problem. What would be a slightly bigger problem was water.  
  
Due to volcanic action and lots of meteor and comet strikes during that long ago period, there had been water and an atmosphere on Mars. The planet had been too small to sustain it, the distance from the sun to great to keep things flowing, and the water had frozen. Some had outgassed, molecules wandering off over the ages with much of the atmosphere. Some had accumulated at the massive glaciers of the poles. Vast frozen underground lakes accounted for the rest.  
  
Unfortunately, while the area they had chosen didn't get quite the problems with ultrafine dust or some of the worst storms, there was also no river or aquifer nearby. Hence there would be a need for a mining operation that would seek and transport ice from the nearest available source, over 20miles away.  
  
Their AI worked it out and between the two of them, the Workspiders acheived a compromise. This could be the base camp. A second camp could be developed closer to the water source. Eventually they could tap the reservoirs at the poles, and seperate out frozen CO2 from H2O, but for now this would be workable if not elegant.   
  
A set of camps, and then the airlocks and main dome could be built.  
  
Meanwhile, a trailer on Deimos opened up and began unfolding communications equipment.  
  
Unfortunately, Ami had not discovered the files on hyperspatial tunnels and mass transporters prior to the ship being launched. Nor was there any communication between Japan and Mars. Otherwise the priorities would have been different.  
  
--------  
  
"Mah Fahn You" suggested Shampoo.  
  
"I am *not* a troublemaker," insisted Kasumi.  
  
"You is one who wanted to talk to stupid Terminator."  
  
"Well it was Nabiki who started making fun of him," said Kasumi thoughtfully.  
  
"How was I to know he had *no* sense of humor?" Nabiki grumped.   
  
"So now what do we do?" Ukyo sighed and snapped her suspenders. Then made a note to never do that again.  
  
Cologne sighed but knew quite well that teenage girls were prone to thinking they knew it all and not quite grasping how little that actually was. "Never mind, children, this is only a temporary setback. Once that robot ascertains that Nabiki's jest was just that, we'll likely be out of her shortly." She hadn't bothered to fight the robot as it had been quite polite and there had been no immediate gain in using a Breaking Point to disable it. Besides, she had learned a few things because of where they had chosen to put them in the meantime.  
  
"My goodness, what strange food," commented Kasumi as she examined their temporary holding cell. Which happened to be a kitchen and cafeteria area that looked new and largely unused.  
  
"What did you expect, Miss Tendo?" Cologne raised an eyebrow as she examined the freezer room herself before gently moving the kimono-clad Kasumi to the side and closing that door. "Everyone here, save ourselves and Shampoo's backup airen, are robots. From what Shampoo told me, that potential son-in-law is American. Hence the preponderance of non-Japanese foods."  
  
"Looks like mainly he gets by on sandwiches," tsked Ukyo as she checked out the oven. "What, no grill?"  
  
Shampoo checked. "It look like only thing get used is these three pans, funny looking teapot, and this thing. What is?"  
  
"That's a crockpot," noted Kasumi, lifting the lid and sniffing. "Vegetable soup? Oh and the teapot is an old tetsubin design."  
  
Nabiki poked around but her interest in kitchens was in what could scrounge out for eating. Though there was a little doll house-like structure on one table that she couldn't figure out immediately.  
  
"Shampoo think this good time to make big dinner for airen!"  
  
"It's beginning to get late, Shampoo," said Cologne looking over the place thoughtfully. Obviously one of Shampoo's airen would be a good choice for opening the restaurant. This one, however, seemed of completely different nature and a radically different approach was called for. "Shampoo. Choose one. You could not possibly be able to keep both."  
  
"But Shampoo *want* both."  
  
(bonk) "Amazons should *not* pout. Particularly to their Elders."  
  
Shampoo had seen some Japanese TV lately. She quickly went into a dramatic declaration stance. "One airen is strong and give Shampoo many chances to show off Amazon lore and knowledge in saving Earth from menaces from beyond!"  
  
"There's only been *one* menace from beyond, Shampoo," pointed out Nabiki.   
  
"I gotta side with Shampoo on this one," Ukyo jerked a thumb towards the door. "None of that stuff we saw are like tanks or jets or stuff, but there's a lot of activity for just *one* mutant moose critter."  
  
Cologne looked over the equipment and wondered why there wasn't a cook-robot. Everything was built for *human* proportions and usage.  
  
--------  
  
Akane stared in disbelief. She'd wanted to try shouting in Shard-san's ear. Instead she'd entered his head and was now surrounded by flickering globes, like being in a soda where the bubbles were flourescent. Shapes flitted across these spheres, brief images showing within.  
  
Akane was curious enough, and reached out to touch one of those spheres.  
  
(CLICK)  
  
"You look fine, Morisato." Akane felt her lips move to say the words, though she didn't know who the short guy was and the voice sounded vaguely like Shard-san?  
  
"I don't know about this, maybe we should come back later. What if He's busy?" The shorthaired boy saying this looked *very* nervous.  
  
Akane felt herself, no, *him*self snort good-naturedly. She was a guy?! What was this? "It's by your own customs, Keiichi Morisato. You went through the Gate Of Judgement with Belldandy, you want to take your relationship further, you have to ask her father permission to court his daughter."  
  
"I don't know how you talked me into this," said Keiichi.  
  
"Don't look at this as meeting the Almighty," said the body Akane was currently occupying. "Look at it as just meeting the father of the girl you love."  
  
"I'm having a little trouble forgetting that aspect of this," Keiichi said with a gesture at their surroundings.  
  
"Yeah, well, i've never actually *met* Him," admitted Akane's current host. "i arranged this meeting through Peorth."  
  
"Peorth?! I'm outta here!"   
  
Akane was shocked as an armored arm caught the boy by the collar. "Do you want to disappoint Belldandy?"  
  
Keiichi seemed to deflate a little. "You don't fight fair, do you?"  
  
"Most of the time," said the other. "Come on now. *You* have got a clearance. Just that you got permission is a good sign."  
  
(CLICK)  
  
Akane stumbled back into the "room" of all the bubbles. Had that been a dream? Something of it clicked, she'd apparently been *Shard-san* in that little scene. What had it meant? Who was Peorth? Or Keiichi Morisato? Or Bellcandy? Or Almighty?!  
  
Akane looked at the bubbles a bit more closely. That one had a light golden tint, others were red or dark looking or shining brightly.   
  
Eyes flicking around, and with the usual tendency of ghosts to get sidetracked, Akane checked out that darker sphere over there.  
  
(CLICK)  
  
He cradled her as best he could in his arms, ignoring the cold rain except to try and shelter her as best he could. Closing his eyes and trying to give her as much comfort as he could in these last minutes.  
  
"...Basalt-san..."  
  
A feather-light touch along one cheek caused his eyes to open and he looked down into those blue eyes shrouded in pain. "Don't talk. Save your strength."  
  
There was a faint hint of a smile there as she looked up at him. "I know anatomy, Basalt. I go Beyond. Don't cry, my love. You can't face Ares alone, so leave now. There'll be..."  
  
He reached with trembling fingers to close those eyes one final time and set her gently down on the cold stones. Not that she could feel it anymore.  
  
Basalt raised his head and howled grief and rage at the clouds overhead.  
  
(CLICK)  
  
Akane shook slightly from the raw emotion she'd felt in that memory. That had been that short haired android, Ami, but the blood had indicated that that was *not* an android.  
  
Understanding something now, Akane looked around. The number of bright spheres were not very great. Some were even darker than the one she'd just observed.  
  
The Japanese, as a whole, were not very religious in a Western sense. They tended to be born Shinto and die Buddhist. They *did* go in for elaborate ceremony and so wrapped themselves in some of the aspects of Shintoism much of their lives. Still, the idea of past lives was very much a part of the Japanese cultural mindset.  
  
Under that concept, Akane decided that what these spheres indicated were past lives. She wondered if Shard-san remembered any of these. She looked over and saw what looked like her own image flitting across the surface of a sphere. Curiousity moved her closer.  
  
(TUG!)  
  
"HEY!" Akane startled as she felt a pull on her being. It was that way, towards where her head was bobbing around in that tube.  
  
(TUG!!)  
  
"LET GO! I JUST WANT TO SEE THAT ONE!" Akane tried to pull back but it was like she was on the end of a fishing line and being reeled in.  
  
(TUG!!!)  
  
Akane found herself speeding through the various rooms, heading for what was left of her body. She fought, feeling that she'd been on the verge of finding out something important. There was something that... hmmmm. What was this? They were building her a new body? Well, in that case she had some suggestions.  
  
----------  
  
"You are not on list of allowed visitors," Arnie said in a thick Bavarian accent.   
  
"Nonsense, I'm Akane's father!"   
  
[That's right! Let us in!]  
  
Arnie-01 shook his head. "You are Soun Tendo. Disciple of Happosai. Mine datafiles indicate you have a high gullibility rating, are obsessive, and display little in the sense of personal honor. You may not pass."  
  
[Well then, I'll just go visit for him.] Genma thought of all the potentially salable items he might be able to find.  
  
(CLICK CLAK) That being the sound of bars sliding shut behind the massive android. "Nein. You are Genma Saotome. Disciple of Happosai. Mine datafiles indicate you have a high gullibility rating, are obsessive, display no personal honor, and are a weakminded fool with delusions of adequacy."  
  
"We didn't come here to be insulted!" Soun began summoning up the chi for his Demon Head Attack. No overmuscled Bavarian, even a seven foot tall one, would thwart his will.  
  
"Nein, you came here to turn around and go home. Your daughters are fine. Nabiki has vouched for Kasumi and Akane's identity matrix is currently being placed in an experimental body until the regeneration facilities are online."  
  
Soun unleashed his Demon Head. There was no way some gaijin could stand against it.  
  
"Is this supposed to impress me?" Arnie asked. "Aura projection technique manifesting emotional wave effect, also a minor holographic effect. I correct my earlier summation. You are a little girly man."  
  
"Huh?" Soun said, not entirely sure why it had no effect on this gaijin.  
  
Arnie activated a sound effect generator so he could crack his knuckles. "I am going to pump you up!"  
  
"Huh," repeated Soun.   
  
(WHAM!) Soun slid to a stop on the grass.   
  
Genma-snorlax smiled, turned around and began running. He was grabbed and his considerable bulk thrown.   
  
Soun Tendo opened his eyes, looked up, and saw Genma about to make a one-Soun landing.  
  
(WHUMP!)  
  
Arnie dusted his hands, frowning. "You are *both* little girly men."  
  
------------  
  
"Master?"  
  
Greylle struggled awake to find that his intended brief rest had apparently become a nap. "Huh?"  
  
Ami checked her clipboard. "A delegation from the Diet is here. Akane is being fitted into one of the synthoid experimental bodies. Outer hull plating of Arcadia's forward area has begun, rear areas will be much later after minimal shipworthy equipment has been moved aboard. Two trespassers deemed 'Security Risk A' were turned away by Arnie. There have also been four abortive attempts by unauthorized personnel to access security lifts which have not required confrontation. The first tour group was determined to have potential for destructive behavior. Nabiki and the others are being held in the kitchen. A Doctor Kumori Mizuno was able to access a security panel by utilizing an old AEGIS code, and has requested an appointment to see you tomorrow at 4:30pm."  
  
Greylle blinked. "How long was i out?"   
  
"Eight minutes thirty-seven seconds," responded Ami. "Which do you want to do first?"  
  
Letting out a deep breath, Greylle considered. "Okay, send a reply to Doctor Mizuno that that sounds fine, and remind me tomorrow morning about her. Stimulate a REM pattern in Akane to keep her asleep until i see what you're doing. Tighten security protocols on the lifts just in case. Have Usagi, Rei, and Makoto show Nabiki and the others to the outer door explaining that things have come up and that i will have to speak to them later. i will have to meet the Diet myself. Oh, and have someone make a large pot of tea: green, high grade. Sufficient for myself and all the members of the delegation as well as a cup for each."  
  
Ami blinked, transmitting the data through the comm-net. "Anything else?"  
  
"Find my shirt. Then lead me on to these delegates."  
  
-----------  
  
"If you will please accompany us," Usagi said, bowing. "There have been some difficulties. We are currently experiencing a state of emergency. If you would please accompany us to the nearest exit, we'll make an appointment for you to meet our Master tomorrow."  
  
Cologne looked over the three robots. They had some chi? "Tell me, child, are you alive?"  
  
"By commonly agreed to definition, life requires three things. The ability to reproduce, the ability to alter one's environment, and the ability to sense and thereby react to one's environment."   
  
"Got it wrong again, UsaGI," said Rei. "Being alive includes things like chi and ki. The nature of the soul and independent thought."  
  
Makoto scratched the back of her head. "Actually, isn't life defined by love."  
  
"You guys are completely off base: what about micro-organisms?" Usagi lectured her friends. "Bacteria, virii, algae and other single celled organisms. These qualify as life under a typical biological paradigm. Since we fit two of three categories, but cannot currently reproduce without special outside equipment, we are only provisionally alive."  
  
"I don't count some micro-phage or other virus as being really alive." Rei countered. "To be alive is more than just making copies of yourself, otherwise a *computer* virus counts as alive! Come up with a better definition!"  
  
"To be able to love is indication of being alive," argued Makoto. "If you know what it is to love, then you must know what it is to live!"  
  
"No you guys!"  
  
Cologne closed the door behind her on the argument. "Now to find this 'Master'."  
  
--------  
  
They were in the tradition of politicians everywhere: stuffed shirts. Bureaucrats, deal makers, lawyers, big businessmen.  
  
No, not a fun group.  
  
"So, what did you want to see first?" Greylle asked, hoping to keep this positive. Also hoping the Universal Translator was working.  
  
"How much money did you spend on this boondoggle?" One overweight Japanese businessman sniffed as he looked around. "And why have you only hired young girls? These sorts of discriminatory practices will lead to misery."  
  
"He's actually paid for the land," responded Haruhiko. "What he's arranged for is silence."  
  
"Paid? How?"   
  
Greylle looked over the speaker, noticed that the others were reluctant to say anything, and figured that it was time to show off a bit. It worked for others, after all. "Speaking of payment, part of my arrangement was for security upgrades for you, Emperor-san. This way please."  
  
They followed, the one protestor hmmphing and with a sour expression etched on his face.  
  
One of the others spoke for the first time. "This complex took how long to build?"  
  
"It's a work in progress," indicated Greylle as he opened a door into an ampitheatre. "So far it's been a little over two weeks. Computer! Status of guard units earmarked for Imperial Palace?"  
  
The voice coming out of midair startled two of the businessmen. "Units One through Seven complete. Units Eight through Eleven are mostly finished, requiring outer shell to be woven. Unit Twelve developed problems and is being rebuilt."  
  
"LADDIE Units One through Seven. Report for inspection," said Greylle, winking to the Japanese Emperor.  
  
A small door opened and a German Shepherd trotted out.  
  
"Your security upgrade are dogs? Bah, how pathetic."  
  
"Ogata-san, you might want to watch this," said Haruhiko who had no idea what was coming but saw the grin on the gaijin's face and therefore had a clue.  
  
The dog blinked a couple of times then turned towards the opening. "ALL RIGHT LADS, IT'S SHOWTIME! MOVE IT, MOVE IT, MOVE IT!"  
  
"SIR! YES, SIR!" Six other German Shepherds filed out and *marched* in perfect unison around the outside of the room.  
  
"Why did the chicken cross the road?"  
  
"TO GET FROM THE LEFT TO THE RIGHT! LEFT! RIGHT!"  
  
"Sound Off!"  
  
"One Two!"  
  
"Sound Off!"  
  
"Three Four!"  
  
"Sound Off!"  
  
"One two THREE FOUR!"  
  
"Stand at atten SHUN!" The lead dog looked over the six others. "PRIVATE FIDO! THAT MEANS EARS AT ATTENTION TOO!"  
  
"Sir! Yes Sir!"  
  
Ogata's jaw had dropped.  
  
The lead dog stepped in front of Greylle. "SIR! Bravo Company, present and accounted for SIR!"  
  
"At ease Sergeant," Greylle requested. He pointedly ignored Ogata to speak directly to the Emperor. "A full dozen as soon as they're finished. Full sensor systems that can be used to detect weapons or contraband material. Their jaws are capable of exerting a per square inch force of roughly six tons. They're strong, fast, fearless, and capable of independent action."  
  
"They look just like real dogs," commented Haruhiko, having difficulty suppressing the impulse to pat one on the head.  
  
"SIR, permission to speak, SIR!"  
  
"Go ahead Sergeant," indicated Greylle.  
  
The Sergeant moved to face Haruhiko and bowed credibly for someone with such different physiology. "We are capable of a great many tasks and independent thought and action. According to mission briefing we are to supplement your own security force and to be used in a variety of different environments. Let me just say that we're ready!"  
  
A few of the other dogs nodded at this.  
  
"Robot... dogs?!" Ogata twitched.  
  
"Android," corrected the Sergeant. "We have data on a variety of duties from assisting airport security to defense mode at the Imperial Palace. We are quire capable of protecting your family from over 10,000 different threats."  
  
"What would you not be capable of protecting me from?" Haruhiko wondered aloud.  
  
"Sergeant, return to barracks. Give your men a Scooby Snack while you're at it." Greylle lost the grin. "If you want dangers, gentlemen, then lets head to the briefing room. Computer, is the hologram system up in the briefing room?"  
  
The same androgynous voice as earlier spoke again from mid-air. "Negative. There *is* a full holodisplay working in the cafeteria."  
  
"If you want dangers that i personally know about that i couldn't defend against, the best way is to show you I guess." Greylle said, again leading the way.  
  
-----------  
  
Cologne, Shampoo, Ukyo, Nabiki, and Kasumi saw a lot of obvious VIP types and Greylle and naturally followed. Though Cologne had to bonk Ukyo over the head once to keep her from trying to introduce herself.  
  
Ami and Minako noted the line of individuals heading for the cafeteria and decided that they should as well. Ami clicked a relay.  
  
"What?! WHAT?!" Akane stared at her hands, then was up in a flash to check a reflective surface on a paper towel dispenser. "WHAT?!"  
  
"We had this mostly ready, it fit the parameters you requested." Ami raised an eyebrow at the young girl.  
  
"WHAT IS THIS?! Why did you have this in the first place?!" Akane blinked as she checked herself out. Well, she *had* wanted a slightly bigger bust. It was the rest of the package that was disconcerting. Still, the reflection did resemble her, if you made allowances for the fur and coloration and slitted eyes and stripes and clawed fingers and the tail jutting from the bottom of her spine and...  
  
"The potential for encountering extraterrestrial species is increasing. Having evident nonhumans among the crew is a potential way of reducing tensions," Ami explained.  
  
"Huh?!" Akane looked up from where she still pulling on her gums and baring teeth. It didn't *look* like she was a cyborg. Then again, Nabiki looked pretty normal unless you looked for seams around her access panels.  
  
"She means that if there are nonhumans on *our* side, the nonhumans on *their* side would be more at ease." Minako translated.  
  
"Oh, I guess." Akane checked out her backside and wiggled her tail. "Hmmm. This is temporary, right?"  
  
"Yes," agreed Ami, wondering what about her explanation hadn't been clear.  
  
Akane shrugged and smiled at her reflection, watching her ears flicked back. Well, she could have a little fun with this. Heh. Let Ranma call her flat-chested *now* or try to tell her that she was "unsexy" - this looked like her but with the dangerously sexy cranked up.   
  
Ami noted that the panic and anger suppression routines were working, inducing a sense of calm and acceptance. It had been either this or a completely nonhumanoid form like an R2 unit modified to be a cyborg housing. This was also a synthoid frame, artificial tissues, and the process had needed to be tested.  
  
Akane found herself purring as she considered the possibilities of this form.  
  
"If you would, Akane, please follow and remain silent, we have a briefing to attend to."  
  
---------  
  
Two robots straight out of Miyazaki's "Laputa/Castle In The Sky" guarded the exits. Arnie guarded the door. Snoopy kept an eye out for red triplanes.  
  
"Okay, gentlemen, Emperor, err," Greylle noticed the extra people in there and debated whether he should have them jettisoned or not. Spotting Cologne he decided that it would be *way* too much effort. "You asked about potential menaces. There's a LOT of potential menaces."  
  
"Such as?" Ogata was still trying to recover from seeing what were obvious robots roaming the halls.  
  
"Besides the occasional meteor or comet, besides the Sailor Senshi being out and still having menaces that will come for them, besides Phoenix Mountain and Saffron, and neglecting the potential for either a viral or environmental agent ruining the ecosystem?" Greylle suggested. "Well, there's a 98% chance of this world being invaded within the next 100 years."  
  
"By you?" One of the other business types waved a hand at the doorway. "It's pretty obvious that you're not just some American high school student."  
  
Remembering his *other* cover identity, Greylle shook his head. "Nope. Have no interest in invading anybody. Otherwise i wouldn't be working on bolstering defenses."  
  
"Bah," said Ogata. "Then why are you restricting access to your technology?"  
  
"You ever hear of a guy named Nobel? Developed dynamite for its use in construction? Except that after that he'd let the genie out and people used dynamite for significantly different purposes than he had planned. Any technological advancement is a two-edged sword. Right now you have the capability for terrorists to make nerve gas or high explosives just from what can be learned in High School Chemistry. There are parts of the world where that happens. You don't have defenses or the social development to handle the technology you've got."   
  
"And so only you have the access or wisdom to dispense this technology," sneered Ogata.  
  
"Yes!" Greylle resounded. "Though actually, if you could find either a Keiichi or Megumi Morisato, a Tenchi Masaki, Kazuya Saotome, or a Kumori Mizuno, I'll consult with them about such things."  
  
"Invaders?" Haruhiko pressed, not wanting to get too divergent from the original purpose of this meeting.  
  
"Oh yeah. Information on hand indicates one of these may become a problem in the near future. Computer: Display. Alien Species: Swarm."  
  
Light shimmered and bloomed and formed a shape that wasn't quite there.  
  
"This, gentlemen, is a member of a species known as the Swarm. You can't see it clearly because it isn't composed of matter but energy. It's about as intelligent as a single bee by itself, damn near indestructible, and absorbs nearly any force it comes into contact with. There are ways to defend against it, but with what i have it would take over two hundred years to develop a planetwide blackhole generating network. Next picture: Gardener."  
  
This at least formed a solid image, a blue furred form that gave the impression of being ponderous. With three eyes and a vaguely hippo-like appearance, it definitely fit the alien description.  
  
"The Gardeners, if *they* show, would quietly conquer the world all the time believing it was for your own good. They're not bad people, sort of missionaries in some respect, but they would regard humanity as a race of children to be protected and nurtured. And not capable of making their own decisions due to lack of maturity as a species. You certainly provide enough evidence of *that* just in news broadcasts. i wouldn't build a defense against them because they're technology is quite advanced and frankly you'd have a better time convincing them by words. Next picture: Pharoah 90."  
  
A tentacled globe replaced the hippo-man.  
  
"The scale makes this one problematical. i can and probably will fight, but if Pharoah 90 shows up then it would be wise to be able to evacuate the planet. Likewise with any other of the sentai opponent sorts of invaders. Having the capability to evacuate at least *some* people from the war zone. Pharoah 90 is about half the size of Earth's moon, and a lot of the other menaces of that type have troops to exhaust the resources or overwhelm a single defender. Computer, show the following in quick succession: K'ti, Mortijin, Serakei, Oni, Wolven, Mechanoids, Sun Eater, the Nashtiir, Spiradi Voor, C'tarl, Minbari, Big Gold, the Greys, Nilborin."  
  
"...and these are?" This from a suit who looked like he'd just graduated from business school and had coincidently just found himself in deep water without a shark cage. Which was appropriate as the Nilborin still showing bore a strong resemblence to a Klingon/shark hybrid.  
  
"Just a few of the nearby species who could either be interested in destroying the planet, conquering it, or setting up a colony. You'd have to determine which it is without any prior warning, and some would be in these three categories unless you happen to be able to put a warship in orbit. Then you'd have three who'd change that to 'seeking allies'." Greylle looked around. Some of these weren't going to be in this universe. He was kind of hoping the Swarm wasn't. Each of the species were sufficiently common that any given universe would likely have one even if they never came near Earth for over 10,000 years. He was *relatively* sure that Galactus, the Chulthoids, Klingons, or Sith weren't going to show up.   
  
Goto looked up at him but didn't say anything. Just the hologram technology was way beyond anything Japan could put together. The robots could have been fakery - remote controlled, but what about the catgirl whose tail was twitching in the back of the room?  
  
---------  
  
Despite the fact that it was humanly impossible for anyone bigger than a cat to fit down any of the ventilation shafts, a large Snorlax had stuffed (with the help of an overemotional but enthusiastic outraged father) a smaller but still too big (and quite uncooperative) catgirl into Ventilation Shaft #8. Where she had become lodged of course.  
  
After determining that the obstruction was alive and injured, a robot sent to clear the obstruction ended up widening the shaft to levels sufficient to free her, then sealing the shaft until better repairs could be made.  
  
Ranma awoke, found herself in an infirmary, and reacted by trying to sneak out. After a brief chase sequence in which she found herself being chased by large robots with what looked like really large guns, Ranma had found a decent hiding place.  
  
A coffin-like gadget with a lid, and so Ranma had gotten in and pulled the lid closed until the searchers would leave.  
  
Cursing her father (hardly a new thing), Ranma wondered what exactly this gadget was anyway.  
  
----------  
  
The reactions among those in the back were more varied than those Diet representitives.  
  
The members of the Diet had come expecting to do audits and find out if Ogata's ascertations about boondoggles and misappropriated funds on pipe dreams were correct. They left, stunned, their worldviews turned about like a snowglobe and their thoughts skittering about like those same snowflakes.  
  
Shampoo was frittering back and forth. She *wanted* both airen. Great-Grandmother had said no, however. She understood that the pathetic fighter Akane was supposed to be her rival, though the buxom Amazon felt that in a contest in practically any arena between the two of them would see the Japanese girl flattened. As everyone was confused about their roles and who got who, there hadn't been quite the hostility there might have otherwise have been. Did she want the skilled fighter that she thought she could at least understand (Ranma) or the possibility of even better fights and greater glories by associating with the alien (Greylle.)  
  
Cologne's eyes had narrowed on seeing the blond boy, knowing there was a taint of alien on him. Power. Lots of power associated with the boy. Not just the power of his connections here, nor the machines that he had building each other. She thought she knew his secret now, in which case she'd have to see if there was anything to the old lore.  
  
Ukyo was wondering what the heck was going on as she had been lost in a series of pleasant daydreams involving: herself, Ranma, a hot tub, and hot oil rubdowns.  
  
Nabiki's hands clenched and unclenched repeatedly. She was mesmerized by the amounts of money, turned off by the prospect of alien invaders going after her bank account, and had missed some of the dialogue by appraising the worth of the business suits the visiting delegation had been wearing.  
  
Kasumi checked a few corners was nervous and upset, and as it was her way of centering herself and thinking things over, was asking Ami if there was anything she could clean or perhaps she could fix something in that kitchen? Though Akane now being a tigress was also quite strange and merited thought of its own.  
  
Akane was wondering why her sisters were wearing such strange clothing, but was also concerned about her boyfr... ahem. About Shard-san being an alien. How horrible. She was going to be abducted by a space alien... errr. Actually he hadn't made any such gestures. Akane wondered how she felt about that and why she felt so bloody calm and centered about the whole thing.  
  
---------  
  
Meanwhile, going through a set of status messages, Greylle had found something indicating a communication line to a microwave generating station on Phobos had been established. After making a few inquiries into *why* and *how* they had such a thing on a moon of Mars, Greylle had a perfectly understandable if somewhat cranky response.  
  
"YOU DID WHAT?!"  
  
==============  
  
(1) Nabiki is dressed as May from "Hand Maid May", Shampoo as Bloodberry from "Sabre Marionette J", and Ukyo as "Tifa" from Final Fantasy VII. In case anyone was curious. 


	10. Chapter 10: Pinch Hitters

Chapter 10: Retake  
  
Pinch Hitter  
  
Disclaimer: see previous notes  
  
  
On one hand, Greylle was pleased. The time was fast approaching when he'd have to slip back into the role of American baseball player/High School student, at which point the underground base and various plans would have to be turned over entirely to the marionettes. This showed initiative, inventiveness, and independent thinking.  
  
On the other hand, this had *not* been planned and could have several very bad consequences.  
  
"If you've got a microwave orbital powerplant running in Mars orbit, how are you going to keep Earth based telescopes from detecting it?" Greylle asked Ami.  
  
"Should we have?" Ami blinked as she considered. So *that* was what she'd been forgetting.  
  
Greylle let out a deep breath. "Let's see if i've got this right. You've got three Workspiders on this project. One of them was on Deimos setting up communications equipment and has deployed a robot factory with mass driver to grab Amor asteroids and move them to where they're in orbit around Mars."  
  
"Or crash them into a specific target on Mars to increase the planetary mass and cause volcanic outgassing, incidently increasing the surface temperature briefly," Ami corrected.  
  
"Then two more Workspiders are on Mars itself, setting up robot mines and refineries so that domes can be built on the surface for human habitation?"  
  
"Yes," agreed Ami.  
  
"So basically you've got the whole thing set up on one side of Mars, and you're looking at ways to increase the mass of the red planet to the point where surface water and atmosphere can be stabilized?"  
  
"Yes," repeated Ami.  
  
"Why?" Greylle decided to table the likely problems that would occur when various telescopes discovered activity on Mars.  
  
Ami explained the reasoning she had that had brought out this course of action.  
  
Greylle nodded, slowly turned around, stepped up to one of the reinforced walls.  
  
*WHAM*WHAM*WHAM*WHAM*  
  
Rubbing his forehead after repeatedly slamming it into the wall, Greylle noted that this hadn't actually helped matters any. Pity. "Ami, you *do* realize that my time down here is over in a very short time and that i'm going to have to leave you and the others to take care of my various projects unsupervised until my primary mission is complete? Or at least completely failed? That once that period is up i'm going to have to immerse in the role of some American baseball talent attending Furinkan?"  
  
"Yes," repeated Ami again, then blinked. "Is there a problem?"  
  
-----------  
  
"Hi Dad!" Akane waved at her father before turning to start up the stairs. Tomorrow was a school day after all!  
  
"Who?" Soun blinked at the strange tigergirl, except that she looked a little familiar.  
  
"It's just me," said the tigergirl, then realizing what the problem was - flashed her fangs in a smile. "I'm Akane. This is just a temporary form until I can get my own body back."  
  
*SPLASH!*  
  
Akane wiped scalding hot water out of her face, having otherwise gone completely still in shock. "Dad?"  
  
Soun stared. His youngest daughter had *fur*?! Permanently cursed? No, this couldn't be. His dreams could not have been destroyed like this! "Who are you and why are you claiming to be my daughter?!"  
  
Akane blinked at this, her tail twitching slightly at the end as she tried to process this. "Dad! I'm Akane. Your youngest daughter, remember? This is just a temporary thing because Shard-san still doesn't have that gadget ready to rebuild bodies in their original form."  
  
Soun went to Demon Head Mode. "HOW DARE YOU PRETEND TO BE MY DAUGHTER, YOU MONSTER!"  
  
"...but..." Akane squeaked, eyes beginning to shimmer.  
  
"GET OUT! GET OUT! GET OUT!" Soun couldn't stand this anymore. Genma's son was a murderer and this foreigner had tried to substitute this monster for his beloved youngest daughter. "MONSTER! DON'T COME BACK WITHOUT MY *REAL* DAUGHTER!"  
  
Akane fled as her own father began calling her a monster and worse.   
  
---------  
  
TING!  
  
A coffin opened.  
  
Ranma-chan staggered up out of its depths. "Whoaaaaaaaaa..."  
  
Not noticing her haircut, makeup, *or* that she was currently wearing a sailor seifuku, Ranma-chan looked back at the wild ride she'd just gotten. There had been some very odd things going on in that thing, but after she'd struggled and then gotten sedated, it had actually gotten very interesting.  
  
Mellowed out considerably by the amount of synthetic endorphins and other tranquilizing agents floating through her bloodstream, Ranma-chan staggered over to the door. This was a bizarre little place, but somewhere there were special techniques that she could learn.  
  
Oh yeah, and there was that tomboy too. Had to apologize or something.   
  
----------  
  
Greylle took the lift to the school, stopping on the roof to get his bearings and some fresh air. It was late, he should be getting ready for some serious sleep, but the things going on needed to be settled within his mind before he'd be able to get rest at this point.  
  
A sniffle drew his attention from his inner conflicts. "Who's there?"  
  
A shape padded forward, tiger stripes tending to make her hard to pick out of the shadows. "It'll take a month to turn me back?"  
  
Greylle nodded, then realized she might not be able to see him, especially with her downturned like that. "Yeah. A regeneration tank is tricky, it has to be able to take the sequence and clone any particular body part and oversee the whole process at an accelerated rate. The nanomachines and overseers have to work perfectly and in synch and are very specialized."  
  
Akane's head nodded. "I..." Another sniffle.  
  
A conflict was going on in Greylle's head. On the one hand this was someone in pain, and his natural bent was to offer what aid he could. On the other hand this was *Akane Tendo* - a hateful violent girl who could be nice on occasion but had a tendency to drop into rabid psychobitch mode when her emotions were engaged. "Uhm well..."  
  
Another sniffle, and even in the shadows it could be told that she was shaking. "...I... Daddy..."  
  
Looking heavenwards briefly and silently asking the eternal question ("Why me?"), Greylle stepped forward to clasp her shoulders. Maybe he could just offer some comfort while still remaining sufficiently distant that he could...  
  
"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!" (GLOMP!)  
  
Okay, Akane was fairly cute as a tiger girl. Greylle even understood that a catgirl synthetic body had been developed for use on the Arcadia, he'd come up with the idea himself in that having a few nonhumans visible on the bridge might put alien races at ease with them. It was still Akane under that fur and artificially grown tissue. With her hugging him and crying into his shirt, how the heck was he supposed to get her and Ranma together?  
  
A flash of motion and Greylle looked up to see Nabiki floating nearby. He tried to mouth "Help!" but Nabiki just looked puzzled. Then the cyborg Tendo crossed a finger over her lips in the universal silence gesture.   
  
Looking down at the top of her head and those lightly pointed ears it was easy to picture this as something other than Akane. Maybe a relatively normal catgirl needing comfort. In such a situation that was easy. Hold her, stroke her hair, and murmur a few words of encouragement and comfort.  
  
It seemed to work, the girl in his arms seemed to relax slightly though he was wondering how she was able to breathe with her head pressed into his chest like that.  
  
Nabiki watched this for a little while before giving her head a sad shake. "Okay. Me, Kasumi, and Akane need someplace to stay."  
  
"What happened?" Greylle still felt slightly disgusted, aided by the dampening of his shirt, but curiosity was a powerful factor among silver dragons.  
  
"Daddy threw a fit. Seems he's a bit more Shinto/traditionalist than I thought," said Nabiki thoughtfully. "Anyway he saw Akane, figured she'd been Jusenkyo cursed, and after what happened to me, he lost it completely. Then when we came back and caught the tail end of Akane running off, he saw Kasumi in the kimono and assumed the worst. So, we need a place to stay until he comes out of this latest funk."  
  
Greylle considered how stoic and emotionally stable Soun Tendo was. Maybe in the morning? "Okay, let's see if they've finished the guest chambers."  
  
Nabiki smirked at how Greylle tried to move only to be held in place by Akane. "This could take awhile."  
  
-------  
  
Ami was thoughtful as she interfaced with the central computer. "Alien races?"  
  
"Insufficient data," replied Fess. "Any of those, and others, *are* possible within this timeline."  
  
"Defensive capabilities are insufficient?" Ami considered ways of upgrading their defenses.  
  
"Under current projections, against an opponent like the Swarm, it would require over 100 years to develop defenses that would last more than five standard minutes. In other cases, completing the Arcadia would be sufficient. A scan of the movie 'Independence Day' reveals aliens that could be defeated with existing technology. Though I find it amusing that the aliens in that movie were defeated because they ran their mecha on Windows."  
  
"Disregarding comedies, unintentional or not, and sticking with aliens that are actually within records, what can we do that we are not doing already?"  
  
Fess hesitated. "Not much that would actually be of use here. Due to the need to keep within the secretive nature specified by this scenario, we cannot actually build planetary cannons or the like. Alarming the human populace would be counterproductive and this particular era has produced a general low panic threshold and an unfortunate tendency for mob reactions of a most unpleasant and illogical sort."  
  
"So, the Master's plan is to incorporate humans into the process, hence his contacts with the leaders of the local Empire. This would also be why his protests were minimal at the inclusion of Yuka and Sayuri."  
  
"There are also plans to bring in an elite force handpicked by the Emperor, though he has almost run out of time at this point." Fess activated a holographic display of a calender.  
  
Ami considered possibilities. "The Master mentioned a few names during his conference. See if you can locate any of them."  
  
---------  
  
Metal had been seperated out into various "pure" forms and now cooled in dark caverns hollowed out by robotic moles similar to but more advanced than those that had been used to dig the "chunnel" bridging the English Channel.  
  
Robots trundled their way around, carrying raw materials to other devices which could then fashion and shape those materials to specified form.  
  
Workspider-02 spent 2.0357 seconds just admiring the view. Enough to bring a warm feeling to its central emotive processing center, it was.  
  
The first pressurized enclosure was finished: a multi-purpose dome 100 feet across not counting the airlocks. It was then filled with a mix of oxygen and nitrogen, filtered to remove a few poisons that had been liberated in the process, and promptly abandoned.  
  
Machines didn't mind an air pressure that would leave bruising on a human, nor the poisonous mix of air. The radiation levels were likewise unhealthy for a human, at least if prolonged exposure occurred. Neither that nor the cold were a problem to a pure robot which was what the Workspiders and Moles were. The synthetics like the marionettes and mannequins could have tolerated these conditions briefly though prolonged exposure would have caused problems.  
  
No, oxygen was actually bad for the purely mechanical robots. Their objections to the environment were mainly the problems of microfine particles, the lack of anyone to talk to, and the problems with 300kph windstorms. No lightning, but if they succeeded in terraforming the planet to any degree that *could* occur, hence the lightning rods installed over the warehouses and other non-environmental buildings already erected.  
  
For Workspiders and similar robots being useful was being happy. Their mental architecture was not designed to mirror human emotions and motivations any more than their bodies were. A Workspider enjoyed building, and had a certain artistic flair programmed in. Which was one reason why the domes and buildings had an unfinished look to them.  
  
That and Workspider-02, operating from instructions transmitted from Earthside, was building a transporter pad. Receive only, but if they could get it working they'd be able to go much faster.  
  
The Workspider turned back to its tasks, idly wondering if they could get some music piped in.  
  
--------  
  
Disgust and distrust had warred with the need to nurture and be kind. It had been nearer than he'd want to admit.  
  
"Military style barracks?" Nabiki wasn't too happy with this.  
  
Greylle finished prying the tigress off of him. Even though she was currently asleep, she'd still been clinging onto him. How embarassing. "It's all i've got right now. There was talk about training some JSDF members here, and so it was put onto the floorplans. We've decided not to go with that concept, but because it never got removed from the floorplan, it was built."  
  
"Dibs on top bunk!" Shampoo cried as she leapt up onto just such a position.  
  
"Sugar," Ukyo waved a hand at the line of bunk beds. "There's thirty beds here, so there's fifteen top bunks."  
  
"Oh my, is someone else staying here?" Kasumi noted that a number of the beds looked slightly rumpled and had power cords dangling from hooks.  
  
"Must have been something Ami or Fess came up with," concluded Greylle. He noted one lump further down the row, so it looked like one of the beds was occupied. "i'll make sure you're registered for this. Keep in mind, it's just for tonight."  
  
(GLOMP!)  
  
Shampoo muttered something about Amazon trademark violation.  
  
Ukyo saw this and decided that it was just as well she was going after Ranma. Though Greylle was kind of cute sometimes.  
  
"Don't leave!" Akane mumbled into Greylle's shirt. "I don't want to be alone."  
  
Greylle thought of a few ways to do this, most of which were discarded because Akane hadn't actually done anything horrible or violent to him yet and she was likely to be a little emotionally vulnerable right now. Ah, that might work: she was a Japanese teenager and their reputations were so important to them. "Tendo-kun, it would be unseemly for you to spend too much time with me now. What of your reputation? Besides, your sisters are here."  
  
Akane continued to cling.  
  
Greylle ignored the snickering from Nabiki as she chose a bunk of her own. Akane had looked up and despite being a tiger-girl was giving him that sorrowful puppy-dog eyes routine. Arrrgh. He continued to try to come up with a nonhurtful way of breaking off this contact. Fainting? No - she might decide to play nurse. A manufactured emergency? No way to surreptiously call for such to be arranged. Hey, what about Ranma? "Akane-chan, you've got to think how this would look. What about your fiance Ranma? i certainly don't want to bring you any dishonor!"  
  
Akane seemed to search his face briefly before slowly releasing him. "Shard-sama, do you think I'm..."  
  
Greylle blinked. Now what?  
  
"...do you think I'm..." Akane chewed on her thumb-claw in nervousness. "Do you think I'm cute?"  
  
One surprise after another today. Nabiki snickered again. Kasumi wondered aloud if this was proper behavior for an engaged young lady. Shampoo merely watched with fascination.  
  
"...Uncute unfaithful tomboy..." muttered the blanket-covered lump several bunks down. Not that she was interested or nuthin'.  
  
Greylle paused significantly at that. What to say? Anything other than a yes might be hurtful in her current state. And she *did* look cute as a humanoid tigress. Unfortunately, she might take this the wrong way. So...  
  
Akane got more nervous as the silence lengthened.  
  
"Sometimes, yes," eventually admitted Greylle. "Sorry, i've got to get going. You all should get some sleep, tomorrow's a school night. Bath is across the hall."  
  
Akane saw all the pink light and sakura petals (that nobody else seemed to notice) along with all the flower and vine borders. He had called her cute!   
  
Ukyo sighed and laid back on the bunk she'd decided to claim. She'd heard about American men being fairly free with compliments. However, Ukyo had noticed that *she* had been referred to as cute all the time and not merely "sometimes" - though Akane *was* kind of cute with the tiger stripes and all.  
  
Shampoo was a bit envious. Mercenary girl got to fly and project forcefields. Violent girl got turned into a cute and sexy tiger. If the Oh my girl got a powerup, Shampoo was going to demand her own.  
  
Nabiki snickered yet again as she noticed the dazed expression and stupid smile. "I thought you didn't care what some gaijin thought about you, Akane."  
  
"I don't," Akane responded happily, tail curled up proudly behind her and gently swishing about.  
  
"...good..." mumbled the lump under the blankets halfway down the room. Not that *she* cared.  
  
Kasumi quietly sat at the edge of the bunk she'd chosen, deep in thought. When she spoke it was to empty air. "Excuse me?"  
  
"Yes, Tendo-san?" The voice was a pleasant male baritone sounding from mid-air.  
  
"Ano..." Kasumi wasn't sure how to politely put this.   
  
"You're the central computer right? Not a person." Nabiki said from her position on the top bunk.  
  
"There are many here in the complex who might dispute your conclusion, Nabiki Tendo," gently chided the voice.  
  
Nabiki considered getting into a debate but it had been a long day. "Good enough. Just meant that my sister here didn't have to worry about any strange men peeping on her."  
  
"Nabiki!" Kasumi looked alarmed at the very suggestion.  
  
"The only completely organic male in this complex at this time is Shard-san," assured the voice.  
  
"You know my name, what's yours?" Nabiki was usually very good at remembering names, dropping them later often had benefits.  
  
"Fess."  
  
"Fess as in 'confess'?" Nabiki asked politely, quite aware that both her sisters and their two guests were watching the exchange.  
  
"Faithful Cybernetic Companion actually. FCC or Fess for short. Was there something you required? I'm afraid that that particular room has no visual pickups as yet."  
  
Ukyo thought she had the idea. "We had to leave home without getting any bed-clothes, toothbrushes, toothpaste, dental floss. Things like that. Any chance we can get some of that?"  
  
"Hmmm," Fess considered. "Yes, I can divert one of the fabricators. What style of clothing would be appropriate?"  
  
Nabiki practically gleamed with sheer unadulterated greed.  
  
*CLANG!* "None of that, sugar, we're guests here. How about pajamas for four, Fess-san?"  
  
When a very pale girl with the oddest bleached looking hair and red eyes brought in four sets of pajamas, Nabiki concluded that Fess might not be organic but he *did* have a sense of humor. Nabiki's were golden silk decorated with various currency symbols, Kasumi's pajamas were likewise silk and a light pink decorated with wildflowers (she was able to express a little displeasure and got a similar design on a modest cotton nightgown), Ukyo got a set of dark blue pajamas with spatulas and okonomiyaki, and Shampoo got a set that matched her hair and was decorated with Chinese writing.  
  
"We're not going to have to pay for these, are we?" Nabiki asked, though she was planning on finding *some* way she could keep these.  
  
"Oh, I'm sure we can come to some equitable exchange," said Fess. "It is now 2100 hours. I will be dimming the lights in the complex as we go to rest mode. If you are unable to sleep, full power will still be accessable in the Cafeteria, Main Hangar, and Marionette Assembly facilities."  
  
----------  
  
"The coaches and auxilary personnel have been developed and should be ready by tomorrow morning," Ami said.   
  
"Good," said Greylle, then stopped and pointed at a new door. "That wasn't on my floorplans. What is it?"  
  
"Airlock. Leading to a bulk matter transmitter. The receiver is being built on Mars. The timing is critical, and with the retransmitter on Phobos and the hyperspatial currents it can only be used briefly and then only at specific times."  
  
Greylle thought about and terraforming Mars *would* provide a convenient bolthole. "With the problems of Earth's orbit, Earth's rotation, Deimos' orbit and rotation, and the same factors with Mars, it won't work more often than not. Suggest making an area of Phobos a holding area. Though if we put a seperate satellite above the solar orbital plane that'll help.  
  
Ami blinked as she took the suggestions in and began working out methods.  
  
"What of the rest of my team?" Greylle's impression of the rest of the Furinkan baseball team hadn't been that high. To try to develop those skills he needed team-mates and opposition that could hold up. He started walking again, an idle portion of his mind turning over the possibility of emplaced planetary defense weapons and possibly a full scale replica of some starship kept there for safe keeping.  
  
"Being taken care of," Ami assured him.  
  
"Dimensional engine?"  
  
"Nearly complete. Testing it will be difficult within a gravity plane so it was thought best to wait on that end of things until we had the Deimos area completed." Of course, with both of Mars' moons altered for use it would facilitate things. Ami sent Fess the appropriate suggestions.  
  
----------  
  
Soun wept. This was nothing even remotely new - an ice cream cone that tasted nice could bring floods of tears from the Tendo patriarch.  
  
Genma sighed and smiled while looking into his sake cup. "It's for the best, Tendo."  
  
"But... how could I do that to my little girls? I just got so..."  
  
"You've stressed out before, my friend, but before you pass judgement completely consider something." Genma put his sake cup on the little hot plate while he considered Soun.  
  
"Pass judgement?"  
  
"Those may have well really been your daughters, perhaps not, but it is a possibility. In which case, you sending them back may have been the best thing you could do for them."  
  
Soun looked up, trying to work this out. "How's that again?"  
  
Genma smirked. He'd always been the better planner of the two. "Simple. This boy may be some sort of genius and in line for a lot of money as a baseball player, but he is still a teenage boy. Your daughters are lovely teenage girls."  
  
"Your point, Saotome?"  
  
Seeing the steam beginning to play around the lip of the sake cup, Genma picked it up and sipped at it. Ah, perfect! "Simple. He's been consistent - it will take one month for the boy to develop a way of rebuilding body parts. One month with three lovely girls. Think of the sort of fortune that sort of device would be worth, Tendo. Once he gets to know your daughters, he'll see what treasures they are he won't be able to help himself. Once he's developed a relationship with one of your daughters you can get them married off in no time. And since he's American and wealthy - you won't have to worry about dowries."  
  
Soun began to smile. "That's so true, Saotome!"  
  
"Then of course there's Ranma," gloated Genma. "With him not being allowed back until your daughters are returned *whole* - his jealousy will burn within him. He'll *have* to try and win one of your daughters, if not all three, away from this gaijin. Then we just have a double wedding!"  
  
"Genius, Saotome! Pure genius!"  
  
Genma smirked and poured himself some more sake. "True, Tendo, true."  
  
----------  
  
"Emperor," said a man, setting a folder down on the desk.  
  
"Is that?" The Prime Minister's attache was one of those rare, unique, and indespensible individuals: he was competent and knew when to keep his mouth shut.  
  
"Keiichi Morisato, a sophomore student at the men's dorm of Nekomi Technical Institute. His sister Megumi is in her senior year at Ogata High School." Haruhiko flipped through the pages.   
  
"Nekomi?" Yoshinori pondered it for a moment before admitting he wasn't familiar with it.  
  
"A small technical college partially set in the mountains to the North. Known more for being cheap in the fares, it nonetheless turns out some fairly accomplished engineers." The one who had placed the folder down still stood, awaiting the inevitable questions.  
  
Haruhiko considered the two photos for a moment before pushing them over to the attache.  
  
"She's cute," commented the PM's agent. "Is there something you see that would indicate why an alien dragon prince would know these two by name?"  
  
Haruhiko glanced at the spy. "Any ideas? You compiled these reports but there's not actually that much here.  
  
"Both are mechanically inclined. Both have good but not exceptional grades." The spy adjusted his glasses slightly as he thought of how best to put the minor details. "Keiichi Morisato has just recently joined the dorm, and has rather quickly been thrust into the 'minor lackey' role by two upperclassmen: a brute named Tamiya and a... strange individual named Ootaki. Keiichi has joined the Motor Club at Nekomi, where his short size and light weight make him a more ideal driver than either of his 'sempai'. He shows promise as a mechanical engineer, though he's average in most of his other areas of endeavor. Short, so perhaps he compensates by being adaptable.  
  
"His sister Megumi is perhaps more understandable. She plays softball regularly though she was a member of the Photography Club during the off season. Somewhat mercenary by all accounts, though also mechanically inclined and described as a real 'motor-head' by some of her friends."  
  
"Your conclusion?" asked the Emperor softly.  
  
The spy pursed his lips as he considered. Had anyone *else* asked, he would have had no opinion. "It is best you contact them before Ogata. There is nothing particularly special about either, but they may have hidden qualities that your prince is aware of. Something like esper potential or some detail in their genealogy that wasn't documented in our initial search." The spy was himself perplexed. There were better looking girls, some of whom had greater talents for machinery. As to Keiichi - his skills were good but there were many who were better. He'd pondered long and concluded that it *had* to be something he couldn't see with normal eyes.  
  
Haruhiko grimaced. Ogata *could* cause some problems. "Fine. Have the two invited here tomorrow afternoon. Use the standard cover story: getting in touch with the common people and such. Have Tanaka here for it."  
  
Keiho, the attache, nodded. "It is likely our resident alien is attempting some damage control. Including relatively normal people who might have enough of an engineering background to know what they're dealing with as an attempt to gauge how acceptable certain technologies would be."  
  
"Hmmm," the spy hmmmed. The possibility that the brother and sister were chosen because of their normality had been missed. Maybe he was getting too old for this business.  
  
--------  
  
"...sional aperature formed in sector four. Alert. Dimensional aperature formed in sector four. Intruder detected. Alert. Dimens..."  
  
"Shut the alarm off," Greylle grumbled, raising his head slowly. He couldn't seem to get any sleep as a human *or* a dragon. Waitaminute. Sector four was his lair, wasn't it? Eyes opened, to behold a pair of eyes staring back at him.  
  
"Wow," said a girl who looked like a perky blonde Japanese teenager. "You look a *lot* more impressive here. You were such a skinny little guy when we faced those rogue Summoners."  
  
"*RIKKU*?!" Silver dragon priest stared at Al-Bhed alchemist. "What? How? Where?"   
  
"Still the conversationalist, eh?" The blonde shrugged and made an offhand gesture. "I swear, compared to Auron or Kimarhi you're just as silent but half as eloquent sometimes."  
  
The large silverscaled head darted around. "What the heck? Rikku, you were in Spira. How could you even be here much less know i was anything other than a wandering adventurer?"  
  
The Al-Bhed waved her finger at the dragon. "Hey, now. You *are* a wandering adventurer. And is this any way to greet an old friend?"  
  
"When the friend is someone you never expected to see again, from a world you never expect to visit again, and know darn well that you don't have a way to track me much less cross dimensional boundaries? Yes!" Greylle rested his chin in the palm of one hand and regarded her. "Well, whatever the quest, i can't help you. i'm tethered to this reality. Even if you were to have a way to bring me over, at an unexpected time i'd be snapped right back here."  
  
"Do I *have* to have such a motive to visit an old buddy?" Rikku turned on the innocent act.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Meanie." Rikku waved a hand then decided to take a seat. "If you *must* know you wore the same clothes while you were there, just put 'em through the wash a few times, and you were there for eight weeks. Helped us out a lot with those Summoners and some of those left over Fiends too. Lulu tried to figure out how to get in touch with you again when we found your little 'cache' and we used your Tallboy bombs to deal with the current threat, then Lulu started trying to track you down because of the weird magic involved."  
  
"And she found out i wasn't from your world," Greylle concluded with a sigh. "So how *is* everyone?"  
  
Rikku looked up at the ceiling in thought, ticking off fingers as she tried to catch things up. "Yuna's still getting worse, not better. She hasn't gone to visit Tidus' grave in awhile. The most cheerful she got was when we were all together and adventuring that last time, and that's why we wanted to contact you anyway - Yuna needs some major cheering up. Wakka is coaching a blitzball team, not the Aurochs by the way. Kimarhi went back to his people, I think he's got a family started there now. Yuna's still in the spotlight as the 'Savior of Spira' and has to do a lot of political stuff. Then there's Lulu - she's at the Macalenia College Of Magic. It looked like Wakka and Lulu might be getting together but nothing came of it. And the other newbie that was with us when you got involved, Shuu, she's back to working as a waitress in Luca."  
  
"She was that shorthaired blitzball player that kept trying to flirt with Wakka, wasn't she?"  
  
"Yeah," Rikku admitted. "She didn't care for adventuring or that sort of thing though. Now she's with the Aurochs when she's not waitressing and I think she's interested in Keepa."  
  
"You're just here to try to get me to cheer up Yuna?" Greylle was openly suspicious.  
  
"Well, that and maybe it was getting me down being around Yuna like that." Rikku hugged one of her legs while trying to find something interesting to focus on. "And boring. We've got some airships being built nowadays, the Guado are being cast down while we Al Bhed are being more accepted now - definite reversal of fortune for both of us. That's a very interesting gemstone you've got buried in your chest like that."  
  
"It is named Ginzuishou, and it is not by choice," explained Greylle.  
  
"Better not let Yuffie see it."  
  
"...yuffie...?!"  
  
Rikku blinked and covered her mouth. "Oopsie."  
  
Wings half-furled, aura of menace beginning to form, Greylle looked down at the little alchemist. "WHO all came with you?!"  
  
"Nobody, uhm, yet. Well, it's kinda like this," Rikku said, suddenly reminded of the time she'd fought Bahamut but she'd been backed by a team on that occasion.   
  
Greylle had a feeling he wasn't going to like this.  
  
-----------  
  
Kasumi suppressed a yawn as she got up in the middle of the night. It looked like the others were able to get some sleep, how nice for them. Though Akane was purring and it was difficult for Kasumi not to reach over and scratch her behind the ear.  
  
Ranma-chan came to a complete halt as someone began moving just as she had been trying to sneak out. (She'd calculated the chance of a private talk with Akane as zero. Nada. Zip.)  
  
Kasumi pressed the door button, stepping out into the hallway, and heading back to the kitchen. For her: housework was a kata, cooking a meditation exercise. When she was feeling out of sorts, it was time to cook something. The more elaborate the better. She had the distinct feeling that nobody else in her family understood this.  
  
Ranma-chan passed the sleeping girls with only a glance at Akane snoozing on the bed. This had been a very very bad day and she was anxious to get the heck out of here and find her way back to the Tendo place. No telling what kinda weird machines would spring out of the walls or something. Besides, she really wanted to get rid of this makeup.  
  
Kasumi startled slightly as one of the hulking Terminator units looked over her and apparently decided she was not a candidate for termination. "Hello, Mister Arnie."   
  
"Hello, Tendo Kasumi." Arnie got up and started walking towards Ranma-chan. "Excuse me."  
  
"Wahhhhgg!" Ranma-chan had a little trouble with security guards armed with chain guns coming towards her. Especially with the whirr of the gun being turned on. She was a world-class martial artist. She was tough. She was fast. She was modest. How would she hold up under a chaingun wielding robot soldier? Did she really want to find out?  
  
"You are not authorized to be here. Please leave immediately," said Arnie-01, having achieved a lock-on.  
  
Ranma looked wildly around. "I'd love to. Where's the exit?"  
  
"This way," said Arnie with a gesture.  
  
Ranma blinked. It was that easy?! "Uhm okay."  
  
Kasumi shook her head. Ranma was so silly. Akane would be a good influence on him after they were married.  
  
Going into the kitchen, Kasumi noticed the lights brightened as soon as she crossed the door. A teapot was set on one burner to heat as she checked the refrigerator and tsked over the lack of rice or fish.  
  
(Yawn!)  
  
Kasumi straightened, blinking. That hadn't been her. She looked out into the cafeteria. Nobody.   
  
(Yawn!)  
  
Kasumi looked down at the six inch tall girl with the white bunny ears whose necklace terminated in a stopwatch. The bunnygirl blinked up at her and waved. Kasumi noted that the bunnygirl was wearing an apron+blouse+skirt combination that wouldn't have looked out of place on herself. She glanced down at her borrowed nightclothes then again at the bunny. "Oh my. Let me guess, you're the kitchen timer?"  
  
The bunnygirl winked and gave her a thumb's up.  
  
"Oh how cute," said Kasumi. She remembered her Momo-chan doll when she was younger and thought this all a rather neat concept. She wondered if Shard-san could be bothered to part with one.  
  
Timer walked over to the teapot and seemed to regard it before the hands on her stopwatch moved to a different position.  
  
Kasumi looked over the ingredients on the shelves and pondered what to make. "An omelet, I suppose," she said to the bunny-timer. "I'm just not familiar with American food."  
  
[Recipe Request?] A holographic sign appeared over the stove. The letters changed after a moment. [Pardon me, milady. Does ma'amselle request a recipe?]  
  
Not at all used to household appliances talking back to one, Kasumi nonetheless rallied. "Uhm, yes, I'd prefer making something a bit more complicated than an omelet but I'm not familiar with American food and I don't see a lot of ingredients for Japanese dishes."  
  
[Any objection to chicken?]  
  
"Uhm, no," allowed Kasumi. Noticing that the bunnygirl's alarm had gone off, Kasumi poured herself a cup of tea while she talked to the stove.   
  
[Roast chicken in brandy sauce. You will need the following ingredients. Displaying location of ingredients. 1 five pound chicken. 1/2 teaspoon salt. 1/4 teaspoon pepper. 6 tablespoons butter. 1/4 cup onion, diced fine. 3/4 cup brandy. 1/2 cup heavy cream. 1 tablespoon diced parsley.]  
  
Kasumi raised an eyebrow and pulled out a bag of boneless chicken breasts. "Okay..."  
  
[Oven preheating to 350 degrees F]  
  
As the instructions continued, Kasumi melted the butter in a saucepan, placed the chicken within, and sprinkled the pieces with pepper and salt. She added the onion and went back to the table to sip on her tea while the pieces glazed, then added the brandy. Sitting back at the table, she got a little curious and tried a glass of brandy herself.  
  
(Cough cough cough.) A little teary-eyed, Kasumi decided that this was certainly an interesting thing but maybe a bit much for now.  
  
[Cover the skillet with aluminum foil and cook for 25 minutes.]  
  
After placing the glazed pieces back in the oven, Kasumi poured another cup of brandy and it felt a lot smoother this time. The third cup was even easier and gave her this really nice warm relaxed feeling.  
  
Timer's hand glowed as she asked Stove if the friendly human was all right. Stove replied that he'd explain this when Timer's AI was a few cycles older.  
  
After twenty-five minutes (and Kasumi had lost track of how many sips of brandy she'd had lately - she normally didn't drink at all but this had been a very stressful day), Kasumi unsteadily got up and poured the cream over the chicken. Shutting the oven again and moving back to the chair, she did something she had not done since she was a young child. Missed the chair.  
  
(WHUMP!)  
  
"Owie."  
  
[Do you require medical attention?] Stove began recording this, part of medical protocols, to send to the medical facilities. Except of course they weren't finished yet. Oh well.  
  
Kasumi tried to focus in on the glowing green lettering. "Yeshhh. Yesh I do. Nabiki gosh a poweroop. She flies around the house and neighborhood. Flappity flap flappity flap."   
  
Timer would have sweatdropped if she had sweat glands. As it was she activated a little holographic sign to say [Oh my.]  
  
[You said it,] replied Stove.  
  
"Akane ne ne ne. Akane gosh a poweroop," continued Kasumi, feeling around on the table before she found the bottle. "Akane a putty cat. Oh, I tawt I taw a putty cat, putty cat, putty cat..."  
  
[She only had four glasses of brandy. Of course she drank them rather quickly...] Stove decided the five minutes were up and the chicken was ready. Turning off the heat and opening the door he could do himself. Maybe if Miss Tendo ate something? [Tendo-san? The chicken is ready, would you care to try it?]  
  
Kasumi stared at the jumble of letters on the screen. "Huh?"  
  
[Maybe you should have something to eat? And some nice strong tea?]  
  
Kasumi tried to make sense out of the odd lettering on the screen. "Whasheveh. Nabibi gesh a poweroop. Akuma gesh a poweroop and gesh cute and cudderry. I gesh kicked outta house an all I gesh ish a new kimono and nightie. Not fair. Notsh fair at (hic) all."  
  
[Maybe calling a Medic-bot would be a good idea after all.]  
  
"Akemi's widdle fwiends Oompa and Samuri," Kasumi sniffled, "they gesh poweropp too y'know. Nosh fair. I weeded manga (hic) when I was a widdle girl too. I wanna poweroop."  
  
[Actually, you'd probably like a nice nap right now, wouldn't you?]  
  
"Daddy engagesh me to some Amari... Amuri... foreign guy. Who turnsh out to be an aliensh with weird gadgets." Kasumi blinked owlishly at Timer. "No offense."  
  
Timer shrugged, not understanding this at all.  
  
"Schept my new finanshuu... fianfee... boyfriend don't even notish me. Sho I figure out that maybe Akamimi cansh marry Ramen. Nabeepee cansh marry wash-his-name the alien. Excepsh that Nabee tryin' to getsh Akanei togever wish Gail. Exshep that leave me with da big goose egg. Nuttin'. Zero. All I gosh is mebbee that loony doctor an' if I show up at 'is clinic all he wansh to do is dansh with Betty."  
  
[Oh dear. Oh my. Ah, Usagi. Is there a medical pod open? Miss Tendo here appears to have a blood alcohol level of 'You Better Sleep It Off' at present.]  
  
Usagi nodded, wondering if this all performed some purpose within humans. They had to make everything so darn complicated.  
  
Sniffling began to escalate to bawling. "I donsh wanna be um ol' maid. I wanna be a powerpuff princess poweroop too."  
  
Ami entered the cafeteria and held up a hand to Stove's dataplate. Information streamed across. Ami blinked. "I see..."  
  
"Then you can explain it to me," said Usagi, hefting the blubbering young housewife. "It sounds like she wants what Akane got."  
  
"We'll have to confirm that after her systems are back within normal parameters," said Ami.  
  
"I thinsh I wanna go bed now," announced Kasumi. She got up, straightened herself off and marched proudly away.  
  
"The bedrooms are this way, Miss Tendo," Ami informed the girl as she went the wrong way.  
  
"That's the lair entrance, Miss Tendo," said Usagi as Kasumi marched right through the doorway almost before the automatic opener could activate.  
  
"That's cute," said Ami as Kasumi curled up next to a (startled) dragon.  
  
"I'll get her a blanket," said Usagi, running off.  
  
Greylle sighed a long-suffering sigh and got back to speaking with Rikku.  
  
--------  
  
Dreams were a funny thing. Not all species had the same methods.  
  
Dragons typically entered a reverie or else astrally explored. Greylle was trying to nose around those big disturbances and figure out what they were without getting too close. As the saying went: there were bold dragons and old dragons but darn few old bold dragons.  
  
Al-Bhed were similar to humans physically and mentally, but their dreams tended to be quiet things of velvet lightning and soft breezes - nothing they could remember later.  
  
Hotaru Tomoe dreamed of meeting her fiance the very next day. She knew what he looked like and where he was, magic mirrors were good for things like that, and was planning to bump into him. The whole thing gave her a warm happy snuggle-under-the-covers sort of feeling.  
  
Kasumi dreamed the dreams of someone who had been given an injection to help her sleep as well as metabolize that alcohol. Unfortunately it was still going to be a hangover she wouldn't have wished on another living soul. She didn't even wake up when she was moved back to the room with the other guests.  
  
Nabiki dreamed avaricious dreams of gold and silver and was trying to imagine riches beyond imagining.  
  
Akane dreamed of purring and cuddling up with her boyfriend. Who sometimes had a pigtail and sometimes did not.  
  
Ukyo dreamed of her own okonomiyaki restaurant, with her Ranchan covering for her when she was working a cart in front of a baseball stadium. Ukyo was practically purring herself.  
  
Shampoo dreamed of Ranma-airen. Of Greylle-airen. Of her booting her Great-Grandmother to the horizon when she interrupted to say that Shampoo could only keep one.  
  
Genma dreamed dreams of indigestion. But then you *knew* where Akane's body had disappeared to, didn't you?  
  
Soun dreamed of his daughters turned into monsters from beyond the grave who came back to tear down his precious dojo and mock his late wife with their presence.  
  
Happosai dreamed of getting out of this darn cave.  
  
Cologne didn't dream because she didn't sleep. She meditated.  
  
Ranma dreamed about getting something to eat because he had been told NOT to come back without Soun's *real* daughters. Maybe he could get something from Ukyo or Shampoo in the morning.  
  
The various Senshi replayed memory-data left over on their Maiden Circuits. Conclusions were being made.  
  
The more "pure" robots neither slept nor dreamt, so they stayed up all night trying to make sense out of human behavior.  
  
They weren't successful, by the way.  
  
---------  
  
It has been pointed out that prior to Ranma Saotome's arrival in Nerima, it was still weird - just not as bizarre as it would later get. It didn't need to be one of those crossover timelines to have strangeness such as the Kunos being considered model citizens. It was, in fact, a focal point for strangeness.  
  
Prior to finding himself in Nerima, Ranma usually had only really weird things occur to him at a much slower rate like once every five years. Due to various problems of his upbringing and particularly his father, Ranma had become a weirdness magnet.  
  
Put Ranma IN Nerima and the weirdness magnet and the weirdness focus amplified off each other. Hence the typical Ranmaverse madness.  
  
Greylle had always been a weirdness magnet himself, though far lower grade than Ranma, but had gotten truly strange after his "death" and being granted a wish by an Elder god of mischief. Having trained under the Greek god of engineering, as well as a number of other teachers on a variety of subjects, not to mention having his baseline reality rewritten so that he was now a dragon: Greylle's weirdness index had shot up considerably.  
  
Put Ranma AND Greylle in Nerima and one could only be sure of one thing: it was going to get strange.  
  
Still, certain things remained eternal. The sun still rose in the East, though if it was a few minutes late in reaching Nerima it was quite understandable. Amaterasu might be a morning person, and she may have gotten much more assertive since her early days, but Nerima was the sort of place where one wanted an extra cup of tea before facing.  
  
"Eeeee," Kasumi weakly managed as she got up and was then assaulted by a thousand imps with pickaxes who had somehow gotten inside her skull. While stoic and fairly selfless, both Japanese ideals, this was a bit much for someone not used to hangovers. "ooooog".  
  
Nabiki showed excellent tact and restraint. "Ugh. Well at least she wasn't on the top bunk."   
  
"...not so loud please..."  
  
Shampoo didn't mind less competition for her airen, but then this girl wasn't competition anyway and she could prove how nice and valuable a wife she'd make. "Shampoo go make medicinal tea!"  
  
"...please don't shout..." Kasumi was trying to cover her head entirely with the pillow.  
  
Ukyo wondered what she could do, when the idea penetrated. "Come on people, let's get to the cafeteria and then Fess can shut the lights off in here."  
  
Kasumi immediately blessed Ukyo for her compassion and insight.  
  
"Kasumi, are you going to be okay?" Akane gently shook her sister's shoulder when there was no immediate response.  
  
The others had already left the room when Akane exited in a hurry with her ears back.  
  
"I didn't know Kasumi *knew* language like that," explained Akane sheepishly. (Which was very difficult to manage when you're more tigerish.)  
  
With a backwards glance at the closing door, Shampoo started a conversation on what she felt would be a "safe" topic. "You suppose he have training room for martial arts. Shampoo wonder what it be like to spar with Terminator."  
  
"I dunno, girl," Ukyo said after a moment of considering. "Them spider-types look pretty tough. You'd probably get more of a workout from them."  
  
Nabiki shook her head. "Ladies, ladies. I'm sure if you ask nicely one of the nice robots would be happy to spar with you."  
  
Akane thought about it and looked down at her hands, with the white underside and golden fur along the back of the fingers and hand, the slightly long thicker nails, the tiger stripes that started just above her wrist. She felt stronger and faster and tougher, her mind seemed to be clearer and her senses sharper than ever. How to gauge such a thing? She broke from the pack to approach one of the Terminators. "Hey, would you like to spar? Just a little friendly match."  
  
The sunglasses-wearing muscleman moved his head slightly to regard her. "To 'spar' as in a nonlethal form of practice combat?"  
  
"Uhm, yeah," Akane agreed, her tail's tip twitching nervously behind her. And why did all the Terminators have a thick Bavarian accent?  
  
"That would seem logical," agreed the Arnie unit. "Fess. The transport chamber is empty?"  
  
"Yes, Arnie-02. Sensor hookups will allow fine tuning of units after collection of data."  
  
Listening, Nabiki waved the two others off and headed for the cafeteria. She had no real interest in watching this when she could get a hot cup of tea or coffee.  
  
Ukyo and Shampoo, on the other hand, saw some real entertainment value in the offing.  
  
-------  
  
Greylle awoke and shut off the alarm, watching as the forms solidified out of the dimensional tunnel. "i thought i left you on that one timeline, just another minor character intersecting your paths."  
  
The two guys were almost identical in builds, just a few inches of height different between the two. Oversized arms, muscular necks and chests, slender legs. The two women with them were likewise identical in build: slender arms, slender dancer's legs, large chest and wide hips.  
  
The taller of the two guys merely smiled slightly and began looking over the lair.  
  
"Uhm, aren't you even a little surprised that i'm fifty feet long and somewhat draconic?"  
  
"We kind of knew that after our last stop," said the woman with the straight hair. The woman with the curlier hair merely nodded.  
  
"Last stop?" Greylle said.  
  
"Yes," said the silver haired of the guys. "Rikku told us. We sort of knew you weren't local when you used that gadget to resurrect Yuria."  
  
"Oh, i thought nobody was watching when i used that," said Greylle.   
  
"Just Battu, but he had a videocamera," said Yuria. "So we're just visiting."  
  
Greylle started looking around for Rikku but the Al-Bhed had decided to make herself scarce.  
  
Fess' voice interrupted. "Sir, there is a intruder. Identified as Ranma Saotome. Should he be ejected?"  
  
Greylle snorted a white cloud of frost. "i ain't no sir. i work for a living."  
  
"Yes," said Fess. "However, you are also a cleric and a prince. Therefore a 'sir' is a proper form of address."  
  
Greylle glared at the hidden speaker grill. "As to Ranma: as long as he doesn't try to steal anything just keep an eye on him. Or her depending on which form is in use."  
  
"Which form?" Mamiya asked. "Him or her?"  
  
"Easier to show you," said Greylle, shifting to human form.  
  
"You still look quite a bit different," said Rei.   
  
"Yeah, i'm not a bratty Indonesian girl," acknowledged Greylle. "This is at least a little closer."  
  
---------  
  
Ranma snuck in as best he could, using skills honed by the loving care and thoughtful providering done by Genma over the years. In other words: using the same skills his father had taught him to steal food and other supplies with.  
  
He snuck past the Terminator units. He snuck past the yawning ersatz Sailor Senshi. He even snuck past the WWI Flying Ace as the beagle strapped his aviator's helmet into position...  
  
Okay, Ranma spent a little time staring at this last one. Still, his father had taught him long and hard about the need for Advanced Sneakery 201.   
  
"Anyway, i was going to build android versions of you, so if you're going to be here for awhile the cover identities are already in place," was saying the gaijin as he led a small group of people through the main hallway. Ranma looked at the crowd and stopped again, this time with his jaw dropping.  
  
Ranma's father had often beaten it into Ranma's head that if it didn't involve martial arts, it was NOT worth spending any time on. Ranma had been able to get ahold of some comics years ago, and hold onto them briefly because they *were* martial arts comics. Therefore, seeing these figures walking down the hallway, Ranma was able to identify them and immediately come to the conclusion that these were the persons the comics had been based on.   
  
Kenshiro. Rei. Mamiya. Yuria. Call it "Fist Of The Northstar" or "Hokuto No Ken" it was the same series.   
  
For the first time in his life, Ranma Saotome experienced a moment of religious awe.   
  
==============  
  
hey, Ben Dunn has got a Marvel Mangaverse out and that's pretty much how i pictured the new Akane, so if you cruise by your comic stand and look for his version of Tigra you've got Akane in Retake.  
  
How *will* the uncute tomboy deal with her new look? Hmmmm 


	11. Chapter 11: Wild Pitch

Retake 11  
  
"Wild Pitch"  
  
Metroanime Misproductions  
  
DISCLAIMER: An unintended fic that is well out of control.  
  
----------  
  
Her name was Akane Tendo, youngest of three daughters of Soun Tendo - an overemotional man who had mainly *not* raised his daughters. She had spent most of her young life being mistaken for a boy and being cast in school plays with the male roles. She normally suffered from Rage Disorder, a hate for the male gender in general (excepting a few individuals such as Doctor Tofu), and her hobby was breaking things (bricks, boards, and boys mainly) using her family's school of martial arts.  
  
Normally she would be cast in a love-hate relationship with an arranged fiance who had never had the chance to develop anything approaching emotional maturity due to an abusive childhood. Akane was beset with a number of problems in her life that would plant the seeds for her to go completely and violently insane later on. Delusional kendoists and a beating on her self esteem for example. She would be trapped in this relationship with neither herself or her fiance able to grow as individuals, continually lashing out and seeking to either hurt or one-up the other,   
  
Except that things were going a little different for Akane.  
  
She had just begun being hassled by a crowd of hormonally addled boys and one deluded kendoist, when the whole thing had been brought to a screeching halt. Her self-image had been battered by losing a fight and seeing her more cerebral sister get a powerup, and then by being being killed herself.  
  
She also had been the recipient of two major healing spells, had been brought back to life and her consciousness installed in a synthetic catgirl body that had a calming effect on her psyche. Other than she was currently a tigergirl, Akane had no idea about *this* part.  
  
She was incorrect, but she was pretty sure that the gaijin alien prince was in love with her. Just that knowledge was proving a pretty reassuring and confidence-building thing for her at a time when most of the other things she'd been confident about had been thrown into disarray. When she had been thrown out of her house and effectively disowned by her father, she had found refuge in the arms of that very gaijin.  
  
This all added up to an Akane Tendo who was smiling confidently, cutely showing a fang in the process, her tail making slow movements behind her, as she got ready to face a Terminator unit in some light sparring.  
  
She was, after all, the Heir to Tendo School Of Anything Goes Indiscriminate Grappling. She was also a superpowered tigergirl at the moment, who quite frankly felt more alive and aware of her environment than she'd ever managed before.  
  
She was Akane Tendo, hear her roar!  
  
"Meow."  
  
Akane covered her mouth and looked briefly embarrassed.  
  
"Anytime," said the Terminator, trying to crack his knuckles. "Fess: please note to add sound effect generator so I can crack knuckles. Yah?"  
  
"Noted," said the voice from mid-air.  
  
Ranma came into the room, noting that there was something going on, and that the Fist Of Northstar cast were watching it. Well, if it was interesting to *them* then he was interested!  
  
"Sparring match," announced Fess. "Reinforcing outer perimeter. In this corner: one of our finest armor reinforced multifunction combat androids - Arnie-02!"  
  
"Yah, I haff already said I am ready." Arnie-02 chambered. "Besides you only haff the two combat androids so far."  
  
"And in this corner, representing the Anything Goes school, the challenger - Akane Tendo!"  
  
Ranma looked around, then remembered. That tiger (shudder) was Akane! Who was going to fight the Terminator?! Man, this was gonna be embarrassing.  
  
"I'm rrrready," Akane said, already rushing forward.  
  
Arnie-02 sidestepped, grabbed, and spun. Akane found herself heading for the wall at high speed.   
  
Synthetic tissue sent signals simulating feline reflexes.  
  
Akane twisted in midair, her body absorbing the impact and then springing away with a surprised yelp. Her arc descended towards the cyborg, who leapt forward to meet her in midair.  
  
Ranma's jaw dropped. AKANE?! The girl who had given such a pathetic show in the dojo (and therefore needed to be challenged to do better) dodged the big cyborg and flipped around him in midair to attack from the rear?!   
  
The two landed lightly on the floor and rushed towards each other again, charging in two blurs.  
  
Kasumi stepped in, saw what Akane was doing, turned around and left again. Mumbling something about how Akane gets to be a superpowered catgirl, and Nabiki a superpowered cyborg, whereas what did she get out of all this? Kicked out of her house and a hangover. Kasumi was not a happy camper.  
  
Meanwhile Arnie-02 was in the process of trying to hit Akane, who was flipping and ducking and rolling out of the line of fire but unable to really get a decent hit in herself.  
  
Kenshiro exchanged a look with Rei and the two turned and left, Mamiya and Yuria in tow. Ranma was curious and tagged along, though he did take one backwards look at where Akane was continuing to do acrobatic flips around the slightly slower android.  
  
Akane exulted. This was something she'd never felt before. It was as if mind and body were one, and gravity was almost something she could ignore.  
  
A moment's inattention and a jarring impact to her middle threw Akane backwards. She was slow getting up but realized in that moment that the punch had been gauged to this tigergirl body. If it had been delivered to her original form, it would have torn right through her but this form only had a stomach-ache and bit of nausea.   
  
Realizing that, Akane also realized that when she went back to being plain old human Akane Tendo that she'd miss this strength and clear-headedness. How strange.  
  
------  
  
"Well, since you're just visiting, i was hoping you could help me with something," Greylle said. "This is a marionette version of Makoto Kino, aka Sailor Jupiter II. Each of the Sailor Marionette series has a special enhancement to try to make up for the lack of magical Senshi powers. In Makoto's case, she has something called 'photographic reflexes.' If she sees a manuever or attack while she's in Analysis Mode, she can immediately add it to her arsenal."  
  
"I see!" Rikku chirped and posed. "So you want to see me do my Mug technique."  
  
"Well, your Mug and what she might be able to add of Rei's 'Waterfowl Fist' and Ken's most basic 'Hokuto Shin Ken'," Greylle held his hand up before Kenshiro could object. "i'm not talking about your head-exploder or anything sealed or absolutely secret. Things like your 'One Hundred Fist' technique for example. Heck, if you could just show her some of Toki's 'Gentle Fist' techniques it would be a big help."  
  
Ranma looked over the tall pony-tailed girl and wondered how *she* rated.  
  
Kenshiro shrugged. If it helped then this would still only be a partial repayment. First he'd have to see these "photographic reflexes" and then what could be done to increase that poor girl's ki.  
  
--------  
  
The Noachian era had been a time when large rocks (planets) had been repeatedly slammed by smaller rocks (asteroids and planetsimals) making all sorts of interesting changes to the landscape.  
  
Other than the Pacific Ocean, which had disgorged the Moon, there wasn't that much on Earth that could be traced back to that era. Mars and the Moon were different stories altogether.  
  
Water had once run free on Mars during a brief era in which volcanoes had belched out more of an atmosphere than it had now and asteroids had played a game of planetary tag. That water had either escaped into space through attrition or had frozen. There was a lot of water in the icecap, and there was a very muddy frozen ocean under a place known as Veritas Borealis.  
  
Getting to this frozen water, carting it out, and making something useful of it was a lot easier if you didn't need things like water or food or oxygen. Which was why the robots hummed a happy little tune as they ran something unthinkable on a place like Earth.  
  
It was an Ice Mine.  
  
Other robots fused silicates together into glass. More robots took the thick plates of crude glass and laid them into position on a metal latticework extruded and fitted by other robots. Other robots came by later and placed another metal latticework over the glass to hold the whole thing in place.  
  
While most of the robots were about as smart as an assembly line robot in a modern car factory (ie: not at all) the AI robots like the Workspiders were happy. To work and to be doing something useful = happiness. A simple enough equation, the Workspiders would not have been surprised if most humans could understand it.  
  
So Mars was seeing a slower change than it had in the Noachian era, though it promised to be nearly as sweeping in scope, but there was one difference that would not have been foreseen even by such visionaries as Arthur C. Clarke.  
  
It was a happier change.  
  
Another thing likely unforeseen by visionaries was that despite having eight limbs, each of which terminated in something akin to a Swiss Army Knife full of grapples and tools, Workspider-03 could *not* carry a tune.  
  
"Whistle while you work - dum de dum dum dum da dum! La da da de la da da de however this song goes..."  
  
-------  
  
Yuka and Sayuri waited outside the school gates for Akane. Seeing a redmaned, tigerstriped, catgirl stagger in was hardly what they'd expected.  
  
"Uhm, Akane?!" Yuka blinked. Had Akane been *that* jealous of their hardsuits that she had to get a powerup like this?  
  
Sayuri closed her eyes. She could not believe how weird things were getting. Bad enough Yuka was into this stuff, now Akane was getting weird. Weirder. Whatever.  
  
Akane, for her part, grinned back at her friends. The sparring had ended with her getting pinned by the Terminator until she admitted defeat, but it had been thrilling nonetheless. Her strength and speed were much greater, her sense of balance and reaction time incredible. A sense of oneness - where mind and body and spirit had been forged whole into a weapon.  
  
Yuka noticed that Akane seemed to have a certain glow about her indicating she'd found something to make her quite happy. It was something that transcended the tiger stripes and fur. Something that she had rarely seen in Akane and not in that measure before. "So, uhm, Akane how come you're..."  
  
"Furry?" Akane held up a hand to display tiger stripes and her clawed fingertips. "Well, it's like this..."  
  
------  
  
Hotaru checked her clothing and straightened it as best as possible.  
  
She had considered this nice kimono that Amaterasu-sensei had provided, black with gold dragonflies and a red sash. Very nice and tasteful. Also quite difficult to move in. While appropriate to meet one's iinazuke for the first time, it would also require her to make mincing steps. It also might not be appropriate for an American anyway.  
  
She had considered her old school uniform. A comment from Amaterasu earlier had been remembered about how unflattering that was, so that too had been discarded. Her new school uniform had the benefit of being red white & blue and therefore likely to appeal to an American, but she still wasn't too sure about it.  
  
There had been some consideration of a casual outfit she had recently purchased. The black turtleneck and black jeans had a certain appeal, and were certainly easy to move in. Unfortunately it didn't seem *quite* appropriate even if the iinazuke *was* American.  
  
Which left the current outfit, which had the benefit of being both formal and casual. The red and white outfit common to a shrine priestess was also easy to move around in. Relatively. Amaterasu had said that she looked good in it, and while Hotaru wasn't 100% sure about that, she wasn't sure she should discard that advice.  
  
Of course, if Hotaru Tomoe had felt like consulting Amaterasu regarding this little trip, she had no doubt that the sun goddess would have counseled waiting for a more auspicious time.  
  
Hotaru, however, had not had any friends for a very long time. When a question to Amaterasu had asked if the goddess thought that Hotaru could be friends with this fiance, the goddess had absent-mindedly replied that they *had* been friends, and more than once. That, in fact, the main problem she would have to overcome with this particular American would be his tendency to look on her as a beloved little sister.  
  
The young girl was nervous enough. Waiting around had just been making her stomach upset. As she understood it, she now had a new lease on life and as such it was time to actually live it.  
  
Besides, one of the benefits of being around magic mirrors and the like, you could check out a few things and she'd seen something in one of those images that had given her hopes for something that would interest a young girl like herself a lot. She'd seen herself, a little bit older, a little bit more elegant, sitting next to her fiance in some sort of high tech lounge, and looking practically joyous.  
  
Hotaru Tomoe couldn't think of a time when she'd been joyous. She wanted to give it a try.  
  
Which brought her to wearing her Shinto shrine maiden "uniform" and standing before a concealed metal door and punching in a passcode. Magic mirrors *did* have their uses after all.  
  
"Excuse me," said an unfamiliar voice.  
  
Hotaru tried not to startle or look like she didn't belong here. "Uhm, yes?"  
  
"I'm Doctor Mizuno," said the woman. "If you're going below, I might as well accompany you."  
  
Hotaru considered briefly, then nodded. For all she knew this woman worked there.  
  
A little blue "gem" on the door twinkled.   
:Scan completed.  
:Identification: Doctor Kumori Mizuno, pediatrician affiliated with Juuban General Hospital, mother to Ami Mizuno.  
:Identification: Hotaru Tomoe  
:Aural Pattern: Minor Silver Millenium Pattern in Mizuno. Major Silver Millenium Pattern in Tomoe. Tomoe has awakened as Sailor Saturn.  
:Akashic & Overdimension Patterns: No evidence of demonic possession or dark taint.  
:Items scanned. No weapons.  
:Mana levels: dormant in Mizuno. High in Tomoe.  
  
The door thunked and slid into a recess, having determined that neither were currently a threat.  
  
The elevator did a more detailed scan. Both were exhibiting life-signs in keeping with a high state of anxiety. Power levels on the younger of the two were dangerously high, ridiculously low on the older one. This caused the problem to be brought to Fess attention. Who merely noted who the younger one was and issued a "stand down" order to various security protocols.  
  
Neither Hotaru nor Kumori Mizuno realized that they'd been scanned and analyzed, and merely waited for the elevator doors to open.  
  
They slid open and almost closed again as the two gaped at the scene.  
  
Stepping quickly in the corridor, the young and inexperienced Hotaru gaped at something she'd never considered possible though there had been some glimpsed shapes in the mirror.  
  
The far more worldly and sophisticated Doctor Mizuno *also* gaped. Not having expected quite this despite flying submarines earlier.  
  
Little toaster shaped robots trundled along the corridor at high speed. A robot with an amazing resemblence to "R2-D2" from "Star Wars" sped along the corridor, pausing only to let one of those smaller bots zip past. A giant mechanical spider of some kind slowly picked its way through the crowded intersection to disappear down a side corridor. A little floating triangle shape was using a pair of extensible arms to engrave a bas-relief into the corridor walls, humming what sounded like Mozart.  
  
There were a pair of Terminators standing guard outside one doorway and a floating spherical robot that bobbed merrily along in the air past them. There were robots trundling on treads, rolling on wheels, and walking on legs.  
  
Just when the two were sure they'd seen everything: a large dog wearing a WWI aviator helmet gave the two Terminators a snappy salute before marching off down a side corridor.  
  
A woman with long green hair walked up to them and seemed to stare briefly. "Hotaru Tomoe. Kumori Mizuno. Please accompany me."  
  
"Uhm, you are?"  
  
"Setsuna Meiou version II. If you will accompany me?"  
  
"'version II'?" The doctor looked from the woman to the obvious robots and back. "You're a robot."  
  
"Synthoid or synthetic lifeform would be more correct," responded Setsuna. "My internal systems resemble those of a human to a higher degree than would be indicated by the term 'robot'. If you two will accompany me, a briefing would likely be of benefit."  
  
With a helpless look between them, Hotaru and Doctor Mizuno hurried after the "synthoid".  
  
The meeting room turned out to be a cafeteria. A practically mummified old woman grinned briefly at all of them, causing Setsuna to display her first hint of emotion - surprise. There was also a younger woman who seemed to be having a very bad headache from the way she was holding it and groaning.  
  
"Fess, request identification."  
  
The voice speaking out of midair caused one raised eyebrow (the old woman), one further huddling down and complaining about the noise (the young woman), and two people practically jumping out of their shoes (Hotaru and the doctor).   
  
"The young lady with the hangover currently waiting for water to heat for some medicinal tea is Kasumi Tendo. She's currently staying here with her two sisters because of an unfortunate instance regarding medical treatment and those sisters being returned from the dead through our medical facilities. The distinguished elder is a representitive of a hidden Chinese society that has managed to maintain a discrete existence despite the People's Revolution. Cologne of the Nichieju is here as a cultural ambassador and advisor."  
  
Cologne considered briefly, then decided she *liked* at least one aspect of this high technology center she'd found. It was polite.  
  
Doctor Mizuno had heard something in there that caused her to stop any further introductions. "Medical facilities? Returned from the dead?"  
  
*Ping! Ping!*  
  
The old woman looked over to where a dollsized android with a timer had just signalled that the hot water was ready. A moment later the kettle started whistling. With a few quick gestures she got the cup of hangover remedy (also good for concussions) in front of the stricken young lady. That did not mean she wasn't paying attention to the conversation behind her, of course.  
  
"Yes, Doctor," responded that baritone. "Though mainly they're under construction and will be moved to the Arcadia when it has been completed."  
  
"Arcadia?" Hotaru wanted to know, a dream of being on a starship returning to her.  
  
"Yes, Tomoe-san," said Fess. A hologram showing the interior of the main hangar appeared. "As you can see, construction of the vessel is only 35% complete."  
  
"Medical facilities?" The Doctor was not easily put off.  
  
"Currently the medical facilities are capable of only minor repairs and the construction of bionic replacement systems. We just had a case of patient Nabiki Tendo." Fess began putting up different holographic shots, showing the patient going from being a burned carcass through her bionic reconstruction into a lifelike cyborg.  
  
*THUD!* Hotaru was not nearly ready for that level of gore. Kasumi had glanced up and had likewise fainted on seeing the pictures of what Nabiki had been reduced to through the application of fire and shrapnel.  
  
Cologne and Doctor Mizuno had rather different reactions.  
  
---------  
  
Greylle had been surprised, pleasantly for once. He'd come up top in order to deal with the problems he was sure Akane would face. Actually, she didn't seem to be getting bothered at all.   
  
The guys were put off by her fangs and claws, and therefore were keeping their distance. The teachers were put off by her failure to wear a Furinkan school uniform, but had become sufficiently shell-shocked that this was a minor consideration.  
  
The girls, in another unexpected development, were of two schools on this. One: Akane had been saved from death by her true love (which left Greylle wondering how they had attributed this feat to Ranma but who could understand women?). The second group seemed actually envious. He had had no idea racial dysphoria was widespread within Japan, but from the comments there were a number of girls here who felt that the bigger bust and overwhelming levels of cute a catgirl had were something to admire and wish that they themselves had.  
  
Then an annoyance popped in. With his father.  
  
"Aw c'mon. Ya got that girl training in Hokuto Shin Ken and Nanto Sei Ken," whined Ranma. "I just wanna learn a few special techniques, y'know."  
  
Glancing back at where the eldest Saotome was trailing along listening, Greylle wondered if either knew why they were also called *secret* techniques. "Special techniques, huh. You just gonna keep going, dancing to your father's tune, until i show you something, is that it?"  
  
"Ranma, don't bother. Martial arts *baseball*? If he can show you one move that the Anything Goes school doesn't do better, I'll..." Genma considered insulting and belittling this gaijin as an effort to get him to reveal his potential. It worked with Ranma, after all. The Saotome patriarch tried to think of something calamitous to threaten. "I'll go on a diet!"  
  
That drew a few gasps from the people who knew Genma.   
  
Greylle's eyes narrowed. This could *not* be passed up. "Okay. Let's see how you like THIS Ultimate technique. A woman named Urd taught me it."  
  
"A woman's special technique. This WILL be lame," began Genma, who was following his own technique of insulting your opponent until they lost their temper. It *usually* made them sloppy. "Not that some pansy American foreign dog could do anything better."  
  
Greylle put his hands together in the proper patterns, summoning mana.  
"Spirit of thunder, who races in the sky,  
and shakes the ground and the air..."  
  
Clouds scudded in from all directions, turning black and swirling about overhead.  
  
"with your great power  
become thunderbolts in my hand..."  
  
Genma looked up and saw lightning beginning to form a cat's cradle between the various tufts of cloud. "...okay, now maybe this is a bit much..."  
  
"you - the power that shatters everything!" Greylle brought his hands up in supplication to the heavens, then down to point at Genma. "Gods and spirits of justice! i ask for holy judgement upon Genma Saotome!"  
  
The ground began to shake and a cold wind began picking up in intensity.  
  
Genma started looking for a bolthole, then decided to attack the youth doing this, thereby stopping this long-winded special technique.  
  
"Cosmic Justice!"  
  
Lightning flared from the clouds, twisting together like some divine drillbit as it speared down.  
  
Everyone covered their eyes as the light grew blinding in intensity.  
  
Greylle looked about. There was Ranma, the Tendo girls (Nabiki still ticking off the things she repented as a spell called 'Cosmic Justice' sounded quite dangerous), and the few other spectators. Where was Genma?  
  
"Bweeeee!"  
  
Oh. Hmmm. Must have had a Cosmic Irony angle in there as well. Hmmm. (Thud!)  
  
Ami sighed and picked up the fallen boy.   
  
"Is he okay?" Akane demanded, wondering if maybe she should take the boy off Ami's hands. After all, he *was* her boyfriend. Kind of. Well, maybe. Sorta.  
  
"He overdid it again, channelled too much magical energy." Ami let out a very human sigh. "Can you tell the teachers I'll be right back?"  
  
"No problem," answered Akane, still wondering if maybe she should administer first aid.  
  
"...and for all these other things, I do repent," finished Nabiki, rather than take the chance of herself becoming a little black pig or worse.  
  
"Bwweeeeee! Buqiii! Bwee!" A little black pig seemed very unhappy about this turn of events.  
  
--------  
  
Doctor Mizuno watched with some degree of horror. Her daughter and her friends were those Sailor Senshi? They fought demonic beings from a previous age? They endangered themselves regularly against evil? They had awfully darn silly attacks, no sense of tactics whatsoever, and ludicrous battle costumes?   
  
Cologne hadn't even heard of the Sailor Senshi before and was properly mortified. This young woman was a doctor and one of her daughters was one of those girls on the screen? Young girls who fought demonic beings from a previous age? Who had awfully darn silly attacks, no sense of tactics whatsoever, and she dearly hoped Shampoo didn't see this. Otherwise Shampoo would likely get a costume like that herself.  
  
Hotaru wondered why they hadn't come and gotten her. If that was how they fought, they needed all the help they could get.  
  
Kasumi briefly wondered if she would be expected to dress like that. She'd have to insist on a mask, otherwise she'd never be able to manage a skirt that short. Mainly though she sipped on her tea and was grateful that her stomach was settling and her headache was settling down to a dull roar.  
  
"That's the end of the available data on the Sailor Senshi," said Setsuna as the screen went to a stillframe. It had only taken an hour to come up with a composite that matched the data available on this timeline and display the summary. Of course, it had been thrown together on the fly but they'd had to wait for Kasumi and Hotaru to recover. "They vanished in the assault on Beryl's base. It has been determined that they are not dead, but their current whereabouts are unknown."  
  
Doctor Mizuno excused herself. She had to sort all this out in her mind.  
  
--------  
  
Someone was calling him. Persistant. Annoying. "Fess."  
  
"Sorry but this *was* on my list of priorities for you," said the computer.  
  
Greylle yawned. "Uhm. Alien invasion? Dark Kingdom attack? Second Impact? Giant asteroid? Akane's cooking?"  
  
"Actually, sir, it's the Prime Minister. Washington is rather upset with you claiming Mars."  
  
"Put them on." Greylle tried unsuccessfully to suppress another yawn as the video and audio pickups were engaged and a holographic "screen" was displayed. "Ohayo, PM. Morning, Prez."  
  
The Japanese prime minister looked as if he had gas. The United States President looked annoyed.  
  
After waiting for the bluster to abate a bit, Greylle held up a hand. "Okay, getting around all this 'national security' and 'rights' and other Orwellian doublespeak with emotional buzzword crap, you think it's unfair that there are currently bases being built on Mars and in Martian orbit and that I've got probes in the Asteroid Belt?"  
  
Another wave of indignitation and talk about things that frankly mattered damn little to the recipient of those messages.  
  
"Fine." Greylle held up a hand. "Fess, can you project an image of those secondary sites?"  
  
"Yes, sir."  
  
"i'm not a sir, i work for a living," mechanically replied Greylle. "Dorsa Brevia region. Show site 3."  
  
A topological map appeared in the hologram.  
  
"What's this?" The American president asked, peering at the odd image and apparently listening to someone out of sight.  
  
"It's a 3D representation of a lava tunnel in the Dorsa Brevia region of Mars. By the time you can get men there, i can have cracked nitrogen and oxygen out of the various materials there and have an airlock installed. This will give you an enclosed Earth-type atmosphere in a natural enclosure of two hundred meters wide, three hundred meters across, and two kilometers long. i suggest you bring plants that can handle cold and low water. Lichens work pretty well." The display changed to show the section mentioned.  
  
The American President continued to make demands. "We demand access to your technology! We have a right to..."  
  
"NO YOU DON'T!" Greylle yelled at the display, momentarily losing his temper. "You want to know *why* i'm keeping this technology secret? Look at this. Fess, display mechanism 'Curative Chamber'."  
  
"I don't see why..."  
  
"Consider this little gadget," said Greylle, noting idly that Doctor Mizuno had stuck her head in to see what the yelling had been about and was staring at the two people displayed. When had *she* shown up? "Here we have something that eventually could be used to extend life. DNA forms fractal patterns which then constructs the organism. That DNA breaks down eventually, error messages increasing in number, and you either have cancer or the breakdowns that lead to the problems of old age. This kind of gadget could be upgraded by me to scan a subject's DNA and then come up with a nanomachine treatment that could go into every cell, repair the damage, and then harmlessly be eliminated by normal biological methods. What would be the effect if this treatment, horrendously expensive as it would be, able to extend a lifespan to a thousand years, came into the open market?"  
  
There was silence from the two leaders as they tried to process such an unthinkable thought.  
  
Doctor Mizuno cleared her throat. She was reluctant to speak in front of the two, but this was within her purview as a physician. "Those who could not afford the treatment would demand it. Birth rates would skyrocket if this treatment did not somehow sterilize the patient. Riots, food shortages, and more riots."  
  
"Thank you, Doctor." Greylle said with a nod. "i can't release portable fusion generators for much the same reason. There are terrorist organizations that would not hesitate to take advantage of such things. We're working on a few projects that *could* be released slowly into general use and will do so. Anything we do release has potential for misuse so we're not going to release anything without careful consideration."  
  
--------  
  
Doctor Mizuno had come in because it was something to concentrate on beyond her daughter apparently being a "sailorsuited warrior of love and justice" who was currently MIA and replaced with an artificially created at least partly organic artificial intelligence.  
  
She watched as this young man managed to politely (for the most part) stonewall the American President while managing to make vague comments to the Japanese Prime Minister.  
  
Doctor Mizuno nodded as a site on the Martian South Pole boundary was ceded to Japan. Borehole complex and water mines? Sounded odd but he was giving a gift to his hosts, and that was how the Doctor understood it. What the PM seemed to understand that the American did not was that if they had a livable area waiting for them on Mars, everything else could follow. This young man wasn't offering a free ride, he was trying to offer a hand up. Quite a difference.  
  
The boy was also speaking English. She could follow his lip movements. She was hearing him in Japanese and she was betting that the Prime Minister was also hearing Japanese. The American President, in the typical manner of Americans, was assuming that everyone was speaking English.  
  
Martian colonies. Knowledge of her daughter's extracurricular activities that even her mother had only vague suspicions of after the fact. Robots of all shapes and designs. Artificial lifeforms and medical miracles from what little she'd observed. That this boy was facing two world leaders with such calm and showing no particular deference to either. A resurrected AEGIS. All pieces of a puzzle that the pediatrician was trying to fit into place.  
  
She was aware of the girl with the apron watching from the doorway. Doctor Mizuno had seen large numbers of girls just like her: the archetype of the Japanese housewife. At this point, she couldn't tell if this was an android or a real girl except for the obvious signs of shock. In way over her head apparently.  
  
The younger girl, dressed as a Shinto shrine maiden, still in the kitchen apparently. She'd been slightly scandalized at seeing the length of the skirt on the senshi uniforms and had protested that she had bony knees. Well, Doctor Mizuno had been a little scandalized herself. If she had seen Ami running around in a skirt that short and a tight fitting top like that, she would have had a few protests about it.  
  
Considering the puzzle before her, an idea took shape and she looked towards the ceiling. "Uhm, Fe-su?"  
  
"Yes, doctor?" A pleasant baritone spoke out of midair next to her, causing the pediatrician to nearly go for an orbital insertion herself.   
  
After her breath was under control again and she was no longer clutching her chest, the Doctor tried to regain some quiet dignity and remember what the question was. "Uhm, can I ask a question?"  
  
"You can ask all sorts of questions, but I am afraid your security clearance is insufficient for a wide range of topics to be answered," came the amused reply.  
  
"You're a robot?" The Doctor was considering possibilities. Was she, the aproned girl, the old woman, and that young shrine maiden the only humans here? How sophisticated were these AI? From what she had seen, very - which brought up some philosophical questions.  
  
"Actually I am an AI construct. There are robot bodies I could fit in, but I am currently at the hub of some sophisticated networking systems throughout this complex. In a very real sense, I *am* this complex."  
  
"How many humans are here at this complex?"  
  
"Define human. Define here. There isn't any reason for you not to know, but I'm a little unclear as to what precisely you mean."  
  
"I'm really not up to complex philosophical debates here," said Doctor Mizuno. "I just found out my daughter has been playing sentai hero when she vanished and that this boy apparently had a relationship with her in another life. My ability to deal with strangeness is getting a little overloaded."  
  
"Then answering would probably be a bad thing," replied Fess in a reasonable tone. "Would a nice cup of tea help?"  
  
"Actually, it might." Doctor Mizuno looked at the floor. "They *never* told me there would be days like this in medical school."  
  
"I've just contacted Hotaru in the kitchen. She'll put an extra cup out for you and Miss Tendo," advised Fess.  
  
The Doctor walked slowly back to the kitchen to find that Kasumi had already reached there and there were indeed three cups of tea set out in tetsubin cups. The older woman was not present. Her eyes darted to the side and she saw a formal teaset had been set to the side. "Someone getting married?"  
  
Seeing blushes on *both* girls, the Doctor decided she wasn't going to inquire any further. She was already feeling that she'd wandered through the Twilight Zone and somehow Rod Serling was not going to be able to explain any of this.  
  
"So, Fess, how would you detail the inhabitants of this complex?" Sitting down and gratefully accepting the tea, Doctor Mizuno wondered how to get in on the search for her daughter. So far, allying with the guy out there seemed her best chance but how to do it? She didn't want to wait around for a decision based on what the "Ami" had said yesterday.  
  
"Three humans, one Silver Millenium reincarnated human, one dimension travelling alien reincarnated dragon from the Silver Millenium who is also a specialist in White Magic, three marionettes, two ARNIE type androids, one Workspider, four databots, one R2 unit, one android WWI Flying Ace, four paintbots, three Type II Workbots, six Welderbots, three K-9 units, one Timer class cyberdoll, two Maid class cyberdolls, one Defender class semi-autonomous powerarmor, and myself. Not counting those without any true AI at all."  
  
Doctor Mizuno shook her head. Information overload. Maybe she ought to consider just getting back to work instead of taking personal time off.  
  
---------  
  
"Fess, relay the information about the two sites going to the United States and Japan from my conversation with those two."  
  
"Yes, Greylle. Do you think it will satisfy them?"  
  
"No, not really. I would expect that the Emperor and *his* allies will. Strengthen our defenses will you? I'd expect ninjas and Yaks from various corporations and possibly special forces from the States come to 'liberate' the sort of technology we've got here." Greylle slumped in his seat. "Fess, how old am i?"  
  
"Currently you are sixteen years old."  
  
Greylle glared at one of the walls. "No. Overall. How old am i?"  
  
"I'm not certain of that data," came back a hesitant reply from Fess.   
  
"Close to two hundred years back in that Third Labor timeline," speculated Greylle. "Seventy years on Gehenna. Twelve years as Orion in that timeline where I was Minako's pet dragon. Ten years as a very ersatz Ranma Saotome in that other timeline. Nineteen years in that Sabre Marionette world. Twenty years here and there. Close to ninety years as the incubus in so many different timelines i can't remember them all. i'm *old*, Fess. There are times i feel considerably older than that."  
  
"I see..." Fess said. "You're likely tired from insufficient rest after casting that high level spell."  
  
"Maybe," Greylle conceded. "After everything went to crap in that Fourth Labor, i was ready for rest eternal. Actually hoping for it to some extent. i'm tired, Fess. i just don't know if i can stay the course any more."  
  
"By the way, Hotaru Tomoe is here."  
  
Blinking, Greylle tried to process that change of subject. He'd thought they weren't going to build a false Hotaru because there had been something about the real one being around still. "Hotaru the marionette?"  
  
"No, the human Hotaru Tomoe. Scans have revealed no presence of the Mistress 9 persona."  
  
"Hotaru?" Greylle thought back. "Ah well, back into the role i guess. You know, Fess, she's kind of like the little sister i've never had."  
  
"I don't think she's thinking of that sort of relationship," said Fess, really uncertain about how to broach this subject.  
  
"Hmmm. Well, it looks like most of the projects are going well and don't require *my* immediate intervention. Just be sure to do something about the security uprating. It's best if we could finish the Arcadia or the Mars base first so we could relocate if need be. Though *i* am stuck in Nerima for the foreseeable future."  
  
Fess checked a few things before responding. "Actually, Project Slideway should be ready for testing this afternoon."  
  
"Good," admitted Greylle. "That *would* vastly simplify things if that was operating."  
  
--------  
  
Akane leapt, twisting about in midair, then brought her arm down in a precise manuever.  
  
The volleyball was intercepted by Minako, who managed to return it with a sliding roll.  
  
Most of the other players were gaping as Minako Aino managed to keep apace with Akane Tendo, and they were both operating a good deal of the time having leapt higher than the net.  
  
Then Makoto (on Minako's side) began playing in a similar fashion. Then Usagi (on Akane's side) joined the festivities.  
  
Yuka was wishing she could get her power armor. Sayuri was grateful Yuka couldn't.  
  
Haruka (on Minako's side) didn't like feeling left out. Michiru (on Akane's side) likewise.  
  
"Maybe a game of Wreckball would be better," suggested Rei from the sidelines.  
  
"Wreckball? What's that?" Sayuri pounced on the cue of something to concentrate on besides *this* weirdness.  
  
"Something a little like soccer, I think," said Rei, having only seen a brief notation on one file. "There's three forward linesmen, two guards, and a goalie, on each side. One scores points by kicking or throwing the ball into the goal net without the goalie catching or blocking it."  
  
"Sounds simple," agreed Sayuri, wondering if this was something they played in Juuban.  
  
"You can tackle, kick, hit, clothesline or otherwise attack anyone carrying the ball. Which is another way to score, by the way. You can get penalized for attacking someone besides the ball carrier, but the referee has to catch you doing it. Someone physically ejected from the field is considered out of bounds." Rei considered adding that from what she saw in the clips that went with the article that personal grudges abounded.  
  
"Shampoo think this sound like fun. We play?"  
  
"Yuka, if you even *think* of volunteering us for this sport, I'll never speak to you again," said Sayuri quietly. Especially considering how the volleyball game was going, Sayuri felt that if they tried this 'Wreckball' she'd likely end up hospitalized. At *least.* Considering what had happened to Akane and Nabiki, however, something even more horrible might occur.  
  
Ukyo and Shampoo nodded at each other, then took opposite sides in the volleyball game.  
  
"Tiger Acrobatic Forearm Smash!"  
  
"Rolling Hyperspeed Defense!"  
  
"Jupiter Lightning Return!"  
  
"Amazon Flying Leap Volley!"  
  
"Spatula Slam!"  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke stared. Usually they would be making comments about the girls and how this or that girl looked cute or more risque remarks. Instead they were just sort of gaping at the display and wondering what they could do to avoid getting bounced around like that ball. (Which they were pretty sure would happen if they tried being too suggestive with any of the girls spending large amounts of time in the air above net level.)  
  
---------  
  
"Why robot girls?" Doctor Mizuno wasn't entirely sure *why* this bothered her more than the Terminators or robot dogs or robot spiders or other robots but there was a definite higher number of robot girls running around.  
  
"Oh, well, i know more about marionette technology than other kinds, and i just started building the replacement Senshi just to help cover for the lack of the originals. Then they started building these Rei Ayanami - i got them to stop after twenty of them."  
  
Doctor Mizuno and Cologne both looked at the common sight of these albino fourteen year old girls, one of whom was fitting parts of a really big cannon together.  
  
"The Rei units, one through twenty, are basic marionettes set up with an Ishii Kairo. One of them attends school then downloads her experiences to the others. Unfortunately the rest of them want to follow suit." Greylle shrugged to indicate how little control he had over aspects of this situation. "As for the Sakura, Maid, and Bunny types: the same thing occurring. i encouraged the original more advanced units to upgrade themselves and their operational parameters. The unfortunate thing is that they keep coming up with experimental systems to work out and develop these other series of units as test models."  
  
Cologne mused as she watched several nubile blond girls working on welding armored plates to the hull. "Where do they get the designs?"  
  
"i've travelled. Some of those are based off designs from those travels and others off of TV or movies that they themselves have watched." Greylle shrugged.  
  
"Doesn't it worry you that you're giving machines such power?" Doctor Mizuno looked at an automated construction device and pictured the sort of wounds those pincers and welders could inflict.  
  
"i have safeguards in place, and the experimental models have similar safeguards put in by the ones that came before. It's based on an imprinting routine used where i learned to make marionette androids." Greylle sighed. "Yeah, i *could* make self-aware androids specifically designed as war machines, but they wouldn't be nice people."  
  
"Ah," said Cologne, nodding.  
  
"Besides, if you were worried about raw *power*, i hear Hotaru's around someplace." Greylle looked up. "Fess, is Hotaru around?"  
  
"Yes, Greylle," came the reply.  
  
The Doctor debated for a moment before asking. "The little girl in shrine outfit? What has she got to do with 'power'? Does she have some spiritual sense?"  
  
"No." Greylle considered then shrugged. "This is all confidential but you'd probably figure it out anyway. Each of the Sailor Senshi has a magical affinity to a certain element or type of magic, however instead of spells what they access is channelling the energy into a specific pre-set attack or form. Sailor Mercury, your daughter, is cold water: mist, fog, ice. There's another one who does just water but i've never understood *why* they had two Senshi for the same element. Mars-Fire, Jupiter got Plants and Lightning which *has* to be some Japanese thing because it makes no sense otherwise, Moon - Healing or Purification, Venus - either Metal or Love and i know that doesn't fit the pattern at all but then the progenitors of the Silver Millenium wasn't that consistent."  
  
Cologne cut him off with a wave. "Yes. Yes. We've seen the summary of these Senshi."  
  
"Well, OK, Cologne - then there's Pluto. She does Time. Which brings us to Sailor Saturn. The Senshi of Death and Destruction, whose power can destroy a planet." Greylle waited for them to catch up.  
  
Cologne's eyes nearly popped out. "That girl?!"  
  
"If she were sufficiently motivated, yes." Greylle sighed. "Fortunately she's a very nice girl when she's not possessed by demonic entities."  
  
"I suppose that would help, yes," said the Doctor as she tried to reconcile the shy little girl she'd spoken to earlier with someone who could end all life on the planet.  
  
"How do you know so much about them, and us for that matter? I didn't tell you my name," Cologne asked quietly as she wondered about inducting that girl into the Amazon tribe. Very very carefully to be sure.  
  
Greylle considered what story to tell them. That he could have used magic? That he knew them in a previous life? That they were fictional characters from where he had originated? (Though in at least one timeline in which they were real *he* had been a fictional character. That had been rather alarming at the time.)   
  
"Greylle, the probe of anomalous area south of Tokyo has produced odd results," said Fess' voice. "This is most puzzling."  
  
"Bring up a holographic display. Pardon me, ladies, but this is the best lead i've had so far." Greylle expected the two to leave. He was disappointed in that regard.  
  
Fess hesitated but this *was* a priority. "As you can see the probe was relaying video normally until it reached this fence, then was crossing over the fence from the other side of the property without sufficient time lapse or apparent interruption from the transmission."  
  
"Time of lapse?" Greylle shelved the two hangers-on for the moment.  
  
"Less than .002 seconds," responded Fess.  
  
"Hyperspatial shunt around the manor?" Greylle asked. "Freeze frame on the approach of the manor."  
  
"Possible, but no energy release was detected."  
  
"So we're looking at folded space of some kind, used as an anti-intrusion barrier, of about 500 feet of space." Greylle looked over the old style manor with its neatly trimmed lawn and hedge-gardens.   
  
"A bit more than that actually," Fess replied. "That's a three story manorhouse built in the manner of the American Southeast - period circa 1860."   
  
"What's important about this?" asked the Doctor who was mainly focussed on this possibly being a lead to her daughter's whereabouts as opposed to terms like 'folded space'.  
  
"That's what we're trying to determine," admitted Greylle. "We don't want to tip our hand too early, there's *something* there that's trying to remain hidden and has a lot of raw power. Experienced more with magic than with technology like the probe."  
  
"How much raw power?" Cologne was still dealing with the idea that the girl with the really strong aura from earlier was able to lay waste a planet. Perhaps it was an exaggeration on this boy's part?  
  
"Quite a bit. The shielding is too tight for me to gauge accurately by magic. Though my area of specialty is healing magic, not divination," Greylle absently answered while studying the image of the house. "The only way i could tell through magic that the place was even there was when i was bringing Akane back from the dead."  
  
"It's hard for me to tell when you're joking," began the doctor.  
  
Greylle blinked. "Hmmm?   
  
"I don't think he was joking," followed Cologne as she looked back out at where the ship was being built. "He seems the sort to do eleven impossible things before breakfast. Why such big guns, child? No deficiencies that I need to apprise Shampoo of, are there?"  
  
"Hmmm?" Greylle blinked again, his concentration on something else entirely.  
  
"No, that's right, when the tour group went past the shower we *did* get a decent look," said the old matriarch with a grin.   
  
"Hmmm," hmmmed Greylle, heading for the door. "Maybe if we used a satellite in geosynch... Have to use passive sensors, but..."  
  
Both women looked once more back to where a space battleship was being constructed, then hurried to catch up.  
  
Greylle walked from the hangar to the kitchen, still considering approaches to the problem.  
  
Hotaru and Kasumi looked up from their tea party and stood up as if they wanted to say something, then each motioned for the other to go first.  
  
"Greylle," said Fess, sounding suddenly upbeat. "Security precautions have been upgraded. This facility is also now hardened for biological, chemical, EMP, and nuclear attacks."  
  
"Good, good," absently said Greylle.  
  
"Are you expecting a fight?" Cologne wondered aloud. Privately she was wondering that if Shampoo changed her mind and decided to grab this boy instead of the other one, could they get some shelters like this made under the village? It could be quite a good thing to have just for the peace of mind value. Maybe she ought to send a message to the village in case one of the others would do the trick. Sash would be a good choice. Maybe Lotion or Clover. Hmmmm.  
  
"No," answered Fess. "Not at present. There have already been attempts to breach the security of this base, but only one has been successful."  
  
Knowing exactly what the computer was talking about, Cologne shrugged. "I'm old. I can't always wait around for permission."  
  
Kasumi came to some decision. "Excuse me, why is everyone's lip synch off? I feel like I'm watching some dubbed TV series."  
  
"I am currently maintaining a field that utilizes micro force fields to modulate wavelengths and alter a spoken language to another. Cologne is speaking and listening to conversations in Mandarin Chinese. Greylle is doing the same in English but through an earpiece and subvocalizer. Everyone else is speaking Japanese." Fess thought it was a little distracting, but good practice for when the inevitable dignitaries showed up.  
  
Hotaru took another sip of tea. "Fess-sama. Is there a place where I can..." Hotaru's voice went down to a whisper.  
  
"...maybe some mini-drones..." Greylle speculated about using burrowing or near orbital insertion of stealth probes.  
  
Fess replied to Hotaru by manipulating the air just a few inches from the girl's ear. Her life signs were indicative of heavy embarassment, and so it was worth some consideration.  
  
Cologne, Kasumi, and Doctor Mizuno silently wondered why Hotaru was so embarassed to go to the bathroom, and why she was taking that teaset. Greylle didn't notice.  
  
"About this magic that you mentioned," began Cologne. She was more comfortable with martial arts or magic than technology, but could see the use of all three.  
  
"Hmmm?" Greylle blinked, realizing he was just going around in circles. "Oh, healing magic. You know: curing diseases, healing wounds, removing minor curses, curing blindness or deafness, that sort of thing. i can raise the newly dead under very specific circumstances. Things like that. i'm not powerful enough yet to do regeneration or restoration spells."  
  
To say Doctor Mizuno was interested would be like saying the sun was warm. Cologne also was tallying up uses for this young man and how many Amazons she could get over here. Preferably with one or two married to him.  
  
"Do you have any magic you can show us," began Mizuno.  
  
Greylle picked up a teaspoon.  
"Gather ye the mana flow,  
Bring it forth in magic glow.  
Light!"  
  
Staring at the glowing spoon, the two wondered how to secure that sort of talent for various patients that they knew of.  
  
Kasumi merely raised an eyebrow. She liked doctors and was interested in medicine. This seemed quite handy. Perhaps her Father's marriage engagement between her and this gaijin had benefits and possibilities she hadn't been aware of previously.  
  
-------  
  
Watching a holoscreen that Fess had thoughtfully opened for her, Hotaru finished setting things up and reflected that this did appear to be a good match. "Okay, I'm ready here. Can you signal him, please Fess-sama?"  
  
"Just Fess will do," responded Fess. "I'll let him know."  
  
Hotaru began fidgeting. If only she were older, she knew she could get him to view her as something besides a little sister. If only...  
  
If things had gone normally, Hotaru would have died and been reborn as a baby. She would later be able to advance her age to what she'd just lost through her own power. Adding two years was relatively simple.  
  
-------  
  
"We have just received confirmation that the initial test of the Slideway has been successful," Fess said. "It will still take some time before we're ready for massive transports or sending living subjects."  
  
"Slideway?" Cologne asked.  
  
"Did you notice that the Arcadia hangar did not have an exit?" Greylle asked. "The ship's too big for a normal hangar. So we're using a micro jump when it is ready. Same technology different application. Instead of using a ship to leap, it's just a room. Position is set three ways and we won't be able to operate it regularly due to the orbital positions of the planets and the differing rotational periods, but on occasion you'd theoretically be able to enter a room here, sit down in a crash couch, and then exit on Mars. Takes a lot of power but it would cut time and other costs down enormously."  
  
"Oh, Greylle, Hotaru would like to see you in the auxilary meeting room," Fess interceded.  
  
"Ah, excuse me, ladies." Greylle bowed to the three women and left.  
  
"You said 'eleven impossible things before breakfast'," said the Doctor eventually.  
  
Cologne checked the clock. "Well, before lunch at least."  
  
"Fess," asked Mizuno-sensei of a wall, "is Hotaru in some sort of trouble? I'm a pediatrician, after all."  
  
Fess opened a holoscreen.  
  
-------  
  
Even Ranma Saotome, Heir of Martial Arts Eating In A Disgusting But Rapid Manner, was appalled.  
  
Akane belched. She looked a little embarassed afterwards, but everyone would admit that it was a mighty belch.  
  
Yuka and Sayuri looked down at their empty plates and consoled themselves with the diet they had unintentionally gone on by sitting near Akane. Though the smell from a certain yattai operated by an enterprising classmate was suggesting their diet need not go on for long.  
  
Ranma looked down at the broken ends of his chopsticks, noting that not only were the ends of the chopsticks sheared off but most of his bento (box included) was also missing.  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke noted the complete absence of their bento box lunches, box and lunch both being conspicuously absent from the table in front of them.  
  
Ukyo merely grinned and made another fresh piping hot batch of okonomiyaki as she noted that lunches were not only missing from Akane's table but two neighboring tables.  
  
"Ahhh, that was good," said Akane, licking her fangs. Then blinking. "Why is everyone looking at me?"  
  
Shampoo merely grumbled about her great-grandmother saying that *she* wasn't allowed to turn into a catgirl. No. Shampoo had to be more responsible. Couldn't even get a power armor suit like those two schoolgirls. Shampoo never got to have any fun! Life was so unfair! And now she had to go buy lunch from stupid Spatula Girl!  
  
Nabiki merely smirked from three tables away. One of the nice androids (Makoto) had made these bento lunches this morning, they were quite good, and she'd known darn well something like this was coming. Just Akane's natural competitiveness and that she was currently so much more free with her emotions, particularly the "positive" ones.  
  
The middle Tendo daughter frowned slightly as she realized something and glanced over at the table where Ranma was yelling at Akane, and Akane's reply was to grin and shrug and say something indistinct. Nabiki thought back and realized that Akane was "mellow" - she wasn't nursing that little flame of anger constantly in her heart the way that she had been since grade school. There was this content air about Akane instead, as if she were unconcerned with such things as the current addition of fur, ears, tail and claws.  
  
Akane, unconcerned by her sister's scrutiny or her fiance's comments about her pigging out. She was pleasantly full and would prefer finding a nice lap or sunbeam to curl up in and skipping afternoon class. Oh well, maybe after school.  
  
-------  
  
Greylle went to the appointed room to see what "little sister" Hotaru was up to. He had met Hotaru on, gee, it must have been six or seven wildly divergent timelines now. He hadn't gotten to know the marionette Grape well in that Sabre Marionette world. The sailorjin world with Saturn Hotaru had been scary: that Hotaru had been extremely confident and aggressive. For the most part she was a quiet sort that triggered all sorts of protective instincts.  
  
Entering the room, Greylle noted that Hotaru was shifting around uncomfortably and looked different. Of course that was possibly because she was sitting on her heels in some formal Japanese position. Her clothes weren't quite so bulky on her for some reason, maybe she'd gotten them adjusted by sweet-talking Fess.  
  
Fess' voice whispered to him through the earpiece. "You're supposed to take a place directly across from her, sitting in the same fashion, and say nothing."  
  
Greylle nodded, understanding that the Japanese were very fond of ceremony and being inscrutable. This was apparently important to Hotaru, so he'd go along with it. As he'd said to Cologne - Hotaru was a nice girl when she wasn't demonically possessed.  
  
Hotaru took boiling water off a hotplate, poured it into a cup (unfortunately splashing the water everywhere), took a wooden spoon full of loose tea, dumped it also into the cup, then used a whisk to stir it around.  
  
This was worth staring at. Water and bits of tea stem decorated the table. Hearing a noise, Greylle looked over at where Hotaru was almost in tears. Tabling for the moment the question of what she was trying to accomplish, Greylle wanted to offer some encouragement but remembered Fess saying that silence was necessary. So he simply reached across the low table to briefly touch her hand, smile and nod.   
  
Hotaru essayed a weak smile back and continued on with what little she could remember of the ceremony but her nervousness wasn't helping.  
  
-------  
  
Cologne watched with a certain degree of puzzlement. "I have long heard that the sharing of tea in the tea ceremony is heavily laden with meaning. That every move carries a meaning and is meant to carry great significance, that even a tiny change in the positioning of the hands can alter greatly the message being given by the girl performing the ceremony. Exactly what is she conveying with this?"  
  
Still wincing, Doctor Kumori Mizuno felt like covering her eyes rather than watch any further. There was a certain fascination like viewing some horrible plane crash or automobile accident. Especially now as the girl somehow managed to dump the cup of tea while trying to set it in front of the boy, landing it in his lap with obvious results. "Other than she's nervous, not really familiar with what she's doing, and just knocked over the pot. I think maybe my professional services may be required at this point."  
  
"The boy *does* look like he's in serious pain at this point," said Cologne, silently awarding the American some points for trying to assure the young lady he was all right despite being curled up around the splashdown site. "What's she trying to do now?"  
  
"It looks like she's trying to get his pants off," said the Doctor. "Do you suppose she did that on purpose? Girls today can be *so* forward."  
  
"Hmmm," hmmmed Cologne. Maybe she ought to suggest this tactic to Shampoo? "Well, being forward is a good thing. You're only young once you know."  
  
"Well, there goes his pants," the doctor noticed. "I think she's trying to check his wound."  
  
"He's not being very cooperative." Cologne said, pouring herself some more tea. My goodness, this was entertaining! She hadn't seen something like this since Lilac and Douglas began *their* courtship. Hopefully this wouldn't turn all syrupy sweet like *that* had.   
  
Being a physician, Doctor Mizuno knew that it was impossible for someone to spontaneously combust from the force of one's blush. Hotaru seemed ready to test that as she suddenly realized what she was doing. Fainting was probably not her best choice of actions however. Now it was the Amerikajin who was turning redder than a firetruck. Considering how he was in his shirt and underwear with a girl draped over him, this was understandable. "Didn't she look younger previously?"  
  
"Definitely, but I would guess that going from twelve to perhaps fifteen is a small change to someone with her reputed power level," opined Cologne.   
  
"My services appear needed." The Doctor got up, inwardly gloating. This was just the opportunity she needed to check out the medical facilities.  
  
Kasumi got up. She'd be able to check out the medical facilities in detail if she offered to help.  
  
Cologne grinned secretly. If there were medical facilities here, she'd be able to see exactly what could be done with them.  
  
---------  
  
Fess checked the position of the V-1 space vehicle, en route to Venus. Likewise the X-1 which was more than halfway to a particularly interesting looking pair of asteroids. That was followed by checking the newest set of marionettes being manufactured with Ishii Kairo.   
  
Nonthreatening packages were a consideration when dealing with humans not quite ready to deal with Artificial Intelligences that had superhuman strength among other things, hence the: Maid series, Bunny series, Sakura series, and now the Kitten series.  
  
Most of Fess' attention was on Project Slideway. Building up the transport chamber so that the next available point could see a large amount of equipment and supplies transferred was a priority. Pressure loss needed to be allowed for in case there were any leaks for the brief moment that there was a connection between Mars and Earth. Not to mention the shock buffers, as there was a number of differences in velocity between the two planets. Which was why, ideally, this project would be discontinued as soon as a ship was actually ready to make the leap.  
  
It just wasn't as efficient or safe.  
  
Tomorrow was the day that Greylle had to leave the complex, go back to his tiny apartment, and stop contact with the base. Whether he'd be able to keep his hands off was another question.   
  
Registering Hotaru Tomoe as a transfer student to Furinkan, especially now that she was apparently sixteen years old, was likewise simple. Fess simply made the request of the appropriate authorities and the Emperor's office sent back that it would be taken care of and that he wished that Tomoe-san and Shard-san would have a joyous courtship.  
  
Fess also continued directing various simple construction robots to reinforce security measures, building the Arcadia, and monitored the development of the healing chambers. He was a Faithful Cybernetic Companion, after all, mult-tasking was natural to him.  
  
--------  
  
Next: Back To School 


	12. Chapter 12: Dragon Ascending Pitch

Chapter 12: "Dragon Ascending Pitch"  
  
DISCLAIMER: Most characters owned by other people, which is the nature of fanfiction after all.  
  
---------  
  
Of all his favorite places to be, high school wasn't.  
  
College was better for actually learning something, less formal settings were better for socializing, and despite the usual anime series - a high school really wasn't the ideal place to defend the Earth from alien invaders.  
  
Furinkan was hardly a typical High School, but it was likewise not especially worthy as either a place of learning or a place of social interaction.  
  
Returning to the "hallowed halls" after a month's absence, Greylle had found the entire thing an enormously bad situation. On a most basic level, he needed to feel useful and keep busy. Preferably without being overwhelmed.   
  
The first day back had seen a lot of questions as to why he was back and when could they get tours of the complex.  
  
Nabiki had sold the official story: that he was entirely cut off from those resources as part of a deal with the Japanese government. Now he had to go back to being the baseball star.  
  
Shampoo had gotten into a big fight with Ukyo over Ranma. The two had started out rivals, become friendlier, and were now back into bitter rivalry. Most of the time.  
  
Genma had discovered that his transformation into a little black piglet was an override on his Jusenkyo curse. Now whenever splashed with cold water, he turned into a pig instead of the huge bear-creature that he had been. Soun was delighted as Pig-chan didn't shed as much and certainly ate less.  
  
Soun was pretty much inside the house alternatively sulking because he'd thrown his three daughters out, and delighting in how this gave the girls a chance to "bond" with Ranma and/or the gaijin as part of his plan. Especially as the story was that the gaijin had moved back to a tiny cramped one-room apartment. One of his girls would be alone with the boy of her choice, nature would take its course, and there would be a wedding!  
  
Hotaru had transferred in and spent a lot of time being ignored by most of the boys present. She *did* vow to try again on the tea ceremony, or maybe she should use a Western approach. Her boss Amaterasu just seemed to laugh a lot whenever the subject came up.  
  
Ami and the rest of the ersatz Senshi transferred to Juuban for some reason.  
  
Yuka waxed eloquent about her power armor. Sayuri grumbled about her own power armor.  
  
Akane grumbled about how Ranma couldn't seem to look her in the eye anymore. Also that the boys seemed to stare at her chest a lot. But then so were a lot of the girls for some reason. Oh and then there was that weird boy in the back who kept trying to tie something to her tail and plucking hairs. Hikaru something.  
  
There *had* been some changes but some things had remained the same in the month gone from Furinkan.  
  
He was still assigned to 1-F, which for some reason only known to the Japanese was on the third floor. (The seniors, class numbers like 3-D, were on the first floor.)   
  
Okay, there was now five floors (not counting the two basements) which could be reached by escalator or elevator or stairs. There was the heated outdoor pool (which actually helped to maintain temperature in the underground base by pumping excess heat out into the piping), there was the baseball field and the track area unchanged from previous (at least as far as the eye could see), there was the astronomy section with its telescope dome and planetarium level, there was the metal shop and mechanics bays for those inclined to learn such things, the home economics area had apparently been upgraded from comments though he hadn't seen it yet, and there was the library.  
  
The technology had been aimed at late 20th Century, which meant in this case that while the rest of Tokyo was in 1992, Furinkan Senior High School was currently using brand new equipment that ranged from c.1962 (the kitchens and cafeteria) to 1999 (the computer lab and library) to one area which was closer to 2011 in tech level (the astronomy department used fiberoptic and computer assisted visual range enhancement components that were a bit much for 1992 - especially with a link to a lunar orbit space telescope that nobody had bothered to tell him about).  
  
The word, it seemed, had gotten out. Some administrators had been bragging about how Furinkan (one of the worst schools in academic performance in Greater Metropolitan Tokyo) had recently gotten some major overhauls courtesy of a mysterious sponsor/benefactor.  
  
So Greylle was at least a little amused, despite his funk over being cut off from what he considered the important stuff, at hearing about eminent researchers or respected professors who were practically lined up to come teach at Furinkan.   
  
Of course there were the old teachers, who might have stood a little more proud and straight, but were the same droning bores that they had been prior to the makeover. Which meant that Ranma was still falling asleep in class, of course.  
  
Some of the new instructors were as bizarre as anything that could reasonably be found in a nation as conformist as Japan. Tekiko Tokusei (aka T2) was the new astronomy professor, newly arrived from Osaka, and someone who was frequently trying to find away into the base below the school. A space otaku who would rant for hours about the lack of hard science in science fiction movies and series, but wax eloquent about Oort Clouds and Dark Matter, though she frequently had to be pried away from "her" precious telescope.  
  
Astronomy had become very popular at Furinkan. Some cynics would say it was because Tokusei was a bouncy little girl deemed cute by many. Others because of the high tech equipment. Greylle had come to the conclusion within five minutes of meeting the woman that it was because she was genuinely enthusiastic about her subject, and both qualities were quite apparent.  
  
It was *Senior* High School in Japan, and therefore not mandatory. "Middle School" - what was called Junior High in America, was the last grade required of the students. Many kids who had family businesses to attend to never went into the last three years. Which was Ranma's usual attitude: he was attending under duress and saw little use for high school. In his experience: Ranma + School = Trouble. Also pointless, especially since Jusenkyo and being dragged to the Tendo house. A brief conversation with Ranma had given Greylle an insight there: Ranma felt that since his life had been mapped out with no room for him to manuever - why make any more effort than was absolutely necessary?  
  
So Ranma was one of the few students who did not find the new classes on astronomy, the computer lab, the library with its computers and huge database on nearly every subject imaginable, or even the bays where automotive mechanics could be taught to be of interest. His father had ingrained into every fiber of his being that only martial arts mattered. Only the actual fighting part of martial arts mattered - and that itself was for any and all challenges *must* be accepted and anything that could be done to win *must* be done.  
  
Greylle wondered, upon being confronted with this, if it were possible for his opinion of Genma Saotome to get any lower. At least the current P-chan was keeping himself well away from the school.  
  
Of course, since he'd forgotten to bring a pocket translator, he was stuck with his fractured Japanese trying to understand a lot of things and only partially succeeding.  
  
--------  
  
Evening had arrived at the complex, and several things had occurred. The one with the most far reaching consequences had seen everyone normally allowed access to the complex gathered in one room. There was also someone not normally allowed access, but Fess hadn't been able to find a way to resolve the desire to remove that person without revealing the sensor upgrades.  
  
Ranma was bored. School was boring. Ryouga hadn't been by lately. There wasn't anyone to fight, and he was getting tired of being ignored. He was hoping this would be *something* interesting.  
  
Yuka was wearing her power armor, looking a lot like Linna from "Bubblegum Crisis." Not because anyone was expecting problems, but because she thought it looked cool.  
  
Hotaru was present by Fess specifically requesting that she dedicate a building, so she had practiced the appropriate ceremonies and had brought the requisite materials.  
  
Kasumi was present because she was still trying to find a way to request a powerup. She was in many ways a traditional Japanese housewife, but there had lately come a spark deep down within her of desire for more. To learn to be a healer using the advanced techniques available. To fly like Nabiki did - without a care in the world. To have the overwhelming levels of cute and cuddly that Akane's tigergirl body seemed to put out continuously.   
  
Cologne was present because Kasumi made a nice cup of tea and even if this complex was awfully technologically dependent, she found herself in the role of wise elder/instructor with a number of respectful young pupils listening to her. Okay, maybe those pupils *were* machines or catgirls or strange albino types. That didn't mean she didn't enjoy having conversations with them. And she thought it likely that two of the catgirls and one of the albinos would accompany her back to the village at the appropriate time. Just the thought of what a twist in the shorts that would give some of her rivals was worth a grin.  
  
Shampoo was present because Ranma was present. Besides, Ukyo was here and there was no *way* that she would allow Ukyo any quality time alone with Ranma.  
  
Ukyo was present because Ranma was present. Besides, Shampoo was here and there was no *way* that she would allow Shampoo any quality time alone with Ranma.  
  
Akane was confidently crouched atop one of the crates and sniffing every so often. She smelled pork and something else. Something that raised the fur on her back if she could just figure out what it was.  
  
Genma had unsealed a special technique to hide in his P-chan form in one of the crates and get into the complex. Now he just had to grab some of this equipment, change back, escape the complex, and he'd be *rich!* Any moment now. Any moment.  
  
Nabiki seemed to have some clue as to what was going on and kept fiddling with a camera in her possession. She'd also watched a series called "Slayers" recently and now would respond to questions with an odd wink and the comment: "THAT... is a secret!"  
  
The lights flickered and then went off, this accompanied by an odd lurching sensation.  
  
"Transfer complete," said Kiyuri, one of the Maid series who had just been standing and observing until now.  
  
Cologne pogosticked to one of the previously dark porthole style windows so quickly that she left an afterimage. The others were more sedate, excepting Ranma who continued to look bored.   
  
Genma saw the abandoned tea and saw his chance. With a triumphant "buqii" he knocked over the teapot, changed back to human, grabbed one of the smaller boxes, and dashed out the door, closing it behind him. There was a short corridor and another door, which came open quickly. Visions of riches filling his head, he dashed out across the desert. About fifteen meters from the doorway he was aware that something was *very* wrong.  
  
"Stupid Oyaji!" Ranma tried to open the door but it seemed locked. Kiyuri was immediately there to block him from trying a second time.  
  
Kiyuri shook her head. "Please, Saotome-san, do not endanger your friends' lives by forcing the door."  
  
"Son in law," said Cologne drily, "you try to force that door open I'll show you a few shiatsu manuevers you won't like to be that acquainted with. Look out the window."  
  
"Stupid Oyaji," repeated Ranma, wondering what the old ghoul was going on about. It wasn't like... Ranma stared as he could get a decent look out the window.  
  
Reddish sands blew in sheets and Ranma could feel the deep cold penetrating through both sets of windows. The sun looked awfully small in the sky and the whole thing had an odd quality about it. "Uhm..."  
  
Nabiki was rushing from one window to another, snapping pictures.   
  
"Cargo transfer initiating," said Kiyuri, activating a conveyor to take the packages into a holding area outside the transfer room. "Oh, welcome to Mars."  
  
"Mars? Like in: Mars? Like in the planet?" Ranma repeated.  
  
Cologne stared out at where robots were chasing Genma who was still trying to get away from the station and apparently hadn't quite realized why he was having trouble breathing. "Ranma, normally I might feel that your father had gotten what he deserved. However in this instance I think some additional pain might be required."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Weather conditions outside the dome are typical for this time of year and location," Kiyuri informed them as Ranma's father was finally caught and brought back to the airlock. "Genma Saotome is still alive but is suffering from: frostbite, pressure bruising over his entire body, carbon dioxide poisoning, and..."  
  
Anything that made an android pause struck the others as being of severe interest.  
  
Cologne was the first to ask. "What is it, child?" After all, the girl was only sixteen in appearance but as she understood it had only been built a week ago.  
  
"...traces of human protein in his digestive system," Kiyuri said, blinking rapidly. "Well, at least we know where Akane's original body went now."  
  
Several people wanted to be ill at that revelation. Akane among them. Vows of vengeance would come later.  
  
"It is now official though, Genma Saotome is now registered as the first man to walk the surface of Mars," finished Kiyuri. "Too bad, Ranma-san, you were originally going to get that honor."  
  
"O-YA-JIIII!"   
  
*BONK!* Cologne withdrew her staff after lightly rapping Ranma on the head. "Get in line, son-in-law."  
  
---------  
  
Greylle had no intention of using the crystal imbedded in his chest. The crystal sometimes seemed to have other ideas.  
  
Flashes of heat or tickles of energy came from it on occasion. Most of these times he had no idea what the dang thing was trying to notify him of. Changing to his natural dragon shape would have let him know if there were spirits in the area, however changing to dragon anywhere inside metropolitan Tokyo was likely to produce some results he wouldn't care for.  
  
Besides, there were things he was more concerned with.  
  
Finding a junkyard had been difficult, but once he had, Greylle was able to finally gauge his strength a bit better. His human form could press a little over 6 tons as near as he could tell from the way the hydraulic gauge shot into the red. He could also haul six blocks of compacted cars atop each other and heft it over his head, though keeping them balanced made the whole thing difficult. Having one fall on his foot hurt, but didn't seem to do much in the way of permanent damage.  
  
Clearly - getting a decent workout and trying to build up his strength would be difficult without access to the technology of the base. Otherwise he'd just rig up some extremely high gravity area and be able to get a workout that way.  
  
Setting the cubes to the side he let out a deep breath. Greylle also figured he'd have to work on toughness, speed, and baseball skills. Again: with the base he'd be able to do something. Otherwise this was going to be a real problem. As an age category 5 (or was he 6 now?) dragon, he'd be difficult to injure and bleed huge amounts when something *was* able to injure him. As a human, he was simply about as tough as your average ridiculously powerful martial artist.  
  
"RANMA! PREPARE TO DIE!"  
  
Greylle blinked. He was over six feet tall, blond, blue-eyed, and more thickly muscled than Ranma. Heck, he didn't even have a pigtail! How could *anyone* mistake him for Ranma Saotome?!  
  
Throwing knives crashed into a variety of objects with a lot of pinging noises.  
  
Greylle groaned. Well, now that he saw who it was, the mistake was understandable. "Mousse, put your damn glasses over your eyes!"  
  
"Your tricks won't avail you, and I'll free Shampoo from whatever hold you've got her under," said Mousse while throwing seven throwing knives, two hatchets, fourteen shuriken and a stale looking cheese pizza.  
  
Greylle blinked at that last. "i have *got* to learn that Hidden Weapons style."  
  
"You acknowledge that it is a superior martial art?" Mousse stopped in mid-leap, astonished that the foe he'd been tracking had that much humility. Unfortunately he landed in a stack of radiators while he was distracted.  
  
"Uhm, depends on what you use it for," Greylle admitted. "i don't think i would want to *master* it, but it seems that it would have a lot of uses outside of combat."  
  
"Umf," said Mousse as he tried to untangle himself from where his robes had gotten stuck by some protruding metal edges. The result being that he had radiators dangling.  
  
"Just the possibilities of being able to carry extra backpacks or another load of camping gear. Or when i'm practicing Martial Arts Housekeeping away from the house." Greylle could see *lots* of possibilities. In a world like Rifts Earth, for example, being able to produce a spare rifle and handful of e-clip ammo out of nowhere would be incredibly useful.  
  
"Martial Arts *Housekeeping*?!" Mousse blinked. That sounded incredibly lame. "I'll pay you for mocking me!"  
  
"i wasn't going to charge you for it. Not that i was mocking you." Flicking his wrist, he summoned his baseball bat. Though that was magic and not martial arts. "After all, if i knew how to combine Hidden Weapons and MA:Housekeeping, i'd be able to use Special Attack: Do You Want Fries With That? Ya-TA!... huh?!"  
  
Mousse had had his mouth open as he charged forward. Suddenly the myopic martial artist went down with his mouth stuffed to the bursting point with crinkle-cut crispy-brown french fries.  
  
"How the heck did i do that?" Greylle wondered as Mousse started choking. "Oh. Hang on Mousse, i'll do the Heimlich Manuever. i think it's like *so*." *CRUNCH!* "oops."  
  
-------  
  
A set of oil barrels shot into the atmosphere of a cloudy planet, though their speed at that point had been reduced to about the speed of a fast car.  
  
Internal mechanisms popped tops and contents were scattered as gravity caused the battered metal to speed up and begin the re-entry burn.  
  
The powder from within the cannisters began raining down. Some burned up on their own entry, their own speed still too great for the ultrafine particles to last. Others drifted within clouds of carbon dioxide and sulfuric compounds and their cargo was at last delivered.  
  
Bacteria that could thrive in volcanic vents at the bottom of the ocean or in rocks found themselves once again in an environment that they could thrive in.  
  
A single surviving barrel lowered itself slowly into the crushing pressures of the rocky surface. A mechanism dug deep, and then began sending out tendrils into the volcanic rock around it. From these tendrils it would seek out and leech metals and minerals to expand itself and eventually reproduce.   
  
Other tendrils slowly extended as the machine found and began working those native materials into its being. These extended out into the terrible heat and poisonous atmosphere, in order to pull that atmosphere into filters. Carbon was useful and could be put to use within the machine itself. Sulfer could also be made of use, eventually, but for now it would simply be concentrated and ejected.   
  
As the lower tendrils continued to feed and distribute raw materials, flat surfaces were extended from the upper tendrils to increase surface area for both absorbtion and release purposes.  
  
Eventually it could reproduce itself and begin spreading its influence, but right now the machine was having enough of a time in the harsh environment.  
  
On Venus, the first tree drank of its environment and began to thrive.  
  
---------  
  
Greylle sighed deeply as he got back to his teeny tiny apartment. Mousse would survive, of course, but there had been a problem he hadn't foreseen.  
  
When the Master Of Hidden Weapons had been brought to an emergency room, they had taken off his robe. That turned out to be a bit of a problem.  
  
Mainly removing Mousse's robes had been a problem because of them removing from his person some items concealed there, and removing the robes had also caused the Hidden Weapons style to go inactive. Which made a certain degree of sense, Greylle supposed, he just hadn't realized what all the myopic martial artist had on him.  
  
The swords, daggers, shuriken, maces, blowguns, nunchakus, ton fa, chainsaws, explosive eggs, and spears were all considered deadly weapons for some odd reason. The various small appliances had ID numbers which were being checked against lists of stolen items. The training potties, umbrellas, children's toys, and a complete set of Tiffany 8 track tapes were being considered as mere curiosities.  
  
The explosives, on the other hand, were generating a bit of interest. As Mousse was a Chinese national, he had to have smuggled all this into the country. As soon as his ribcage was rebuilt and he came out from under the anesthetic, Mousse would likely have to answer a whole lot of questions.  
  
Greylle guessed that taking Mousse to the Emergency Room had been somewhat of a tactical blunder on his part.  
  
Stretching out in the small area of a studio apartment, he idly wondered what it was he was forgetting. There was something he should be doing, but what was it?   
  
--------  
  
Ranma sulked. There had been the chance to be the First Man To Walk The Surface Of Mars. The first human being to walk on an entirely different world, not just the moon, but another world! Not that it mattered that much to him, but he could see where when he was old and gray he could've sat down with his kids and told them about that. Respect. Something that he'd rarely gotten in his life, *could* have been his. "Stupid oyaji," he muttered.  
  
Cologne frowned slightly as the shifting sensation occurred again and the familiar weight of Earth's gravity took hold. Pity about that. Once she'd heard their was an entire section of Mars named Amazonis Planitia, she'd wanted to go see it. Apparently a large flat plain that had the biggest mountain on the planet on one end. Intriguing name, even if the place itself sounded positively dismal. No pressure suits her size, and not enough time, and the robots had insisted there really wasn't much to look at.  
  
Kasumi breathed a sigh of relief. Relative safety. She'd been quite aware that if you went through the foot thick wall of the enclosure, you'd be in a poisonous atmosphere. As Mister Saotome had knocked over her kettle, Kasumi found herself really wanting a nice cup of tea to get over this ordeal.  
  
Nabiki pondered this latest development. Life on Mars struck her as being a hardship, difficult and uncomfortable. This sort of thing was not for her. Though she *could* see herself opening a casino that overlooked some of that landscape. Exoticness was a big draw. No, Mars was not for her. Instead she wanted to focus on the revelation that Genma Saotome had done something horrible. Scanning revealed the chemical tags, and so she had to think of some measure of revenge. That could have been *her* after all.  
  
Akane wasn't aware of her own continual flicking in and out of her fingers, a figurative baring of claws. Her old body was *gone* and now she knew what that odd scent was. It was her own original body having been digested. To say that she was displeased by her father's favorite houseguest would be to almost criminally understate the case. Her tail was making sharp twitching motions and there was a line of fur all along her back that was ruffled. If Genma had been conscious he would have been quite nervous.  
  
Genma was unconscious. He also had frostbite, pressure bruising, bleeding from various openings, and was having some trouble breathing despite the oxygen mask placed on his face. When he woke up he'd be in severe pain. Walking unprotected on Mars was not particularly healthful.  
  
Hotaru wondered if her sempai was okay. She was hoping to make friends with some of these girls, but wasn't sure how to open a conversation with any of them. The shrine miko considered that the difference between associating with twelve year olds and sixteen year olds hadn't seemed that great prior to making that leap, but now she was running into problems. Though mainly she was ignored. She didn't have Akane's exoticness, and the other girls were mainly off in their own groups discussing things that didn't seem that interesting. Why was shopping such a big deal?  
  
Yuka within her hardsuit happily hummed a song from an early '70s anime that she only vaguely remembered. Hidden bases, Martian colonies, powerarmor, and magical princesses? This was cool!  
  
Sayuri tried to pretend that her friend of several years was not experiencing some second childhood. Hidden bases, Martian colonies, powerarmor, and magical princesses? What kami had she offended?  
  
Ukyo had something else to hold against Genma Saotome. If they hadn't had to return quickly she could have fixed everyone some okonomiyaki. Nabiki could have gotten pictures. The advertising potential was enormous. Add to that depriving Ranma of the opportunity to be the first Man On Mars? Oh yes, pork okonomiyaki was looking more and more like a plan nowadays.  
  
Shampoo didn't understand a lot of these events. She did know that Great-Grandmother was upset with Ranma's father, and Ranma was upset with his father, and Tigergirl was understandably *beyond* upset at Ranma's father, and Spatula Girl, and well practically everyone else. Spooky Girl wasn't upset, but Shampoo thought that maybe she was out of the loop too. It would be nice to get back to the complex where everyone spoke Mandarin and their lip-synch went to hell, but Shampoo was having trouble figuring out how she could use this situation to get Ranma to realize he was her husband.  
  
Kiyuri was a Maid unit equipped with an Ishii Kairo. She merely observed all the interactions and tried to interpret them as best she could.  
  
It took less than five seconds for the Slideway to pull them back, but in another way it was a very long trip back to Earth.  
  
------  
  
Harry of Pungo, wizard at large, pondered this current mess.  
  
The dragon was altering things, which would have brought all sorts of magical retribution and the world would have been returned to normal after a conclave of wizards had been brought together over the dead body of the dragon if the dragon had been acting like your typical rogue wizard.  
  
Except that these things were *not* being accomplished through draconic ability or magical energies. This area was getting stranger and stranger, but mostly magic was not being used.  
  
The dragon now had a Class One Magical Artifact grafted to his chest, and apparently no control over said artifact.  
  
There was a Shinto shrine which had a mirror which was an interface device for a Goddess First Class with Unlimited License.   
  
There had been some healing and resurrection spells, but nothing major and there had been no consequences from those actions.  
  
Harry's spells had allowed him to spy on one of the resurrected girls, and he'd learned from her that the dragon was actually a timetravelling alien magical prince from the future. He wasn't sure he believed it but it was clear that Nabiki Tendo believed it.   
  
That this alien had technology capable of duplicating some really high level magic had become apparent and was frankly causing Harry some hesitation at this whole mess. Androids with souls? Teleportation tunnels? A spaceship seen in one girl's memory?  
  
So Harry had done what intelligent people have done since antiquity when faced with a problem that puzzles the heck out of them. He handed the problem off to someone else and went off to have a beer.  
  
Which brought someone considerably more powerful and experienced to the Land Of The Rising Sun.   
  
Morgana Le Fey had been around quite some time and was considerably mellower than she had been when Arthur and his folk had been around. She felt that she'd gotten a bit of bad press there, but then she *had* been pretty nasty during a period where nasty and brutish were pretty much requirements of the era.   
  
Within the past century, the most violent and hurtful thing she'd done was give a curse of chronic flatulance to a clerk at Blockbuster Video who had given her some late fees that she'd not earned. She had instead used the woman as an experimental subject and been amused by the woman's performance on several occasions thereafter.  
  
Instead Morgana had been engaged in the magical equivelant of high energy particle physics. There were several questions in the universe that both physics and magic had trouble answering and she'd gotten curious about finding those answers.  
  
The nature of Dark Matter, for example. Scientists and mages could only detect 4% of the universe. Look at the galaxies and how they move and you could calculate the mass. So where was the other 96%? Morgana suspected that Avalon had survived and likely accounted for a tiny little fragment of the mass, but was now out of synch with Earth.  
  
(There was actually some crossover with some physicists and astronomers studying each others works and a few dabbling in magic. Naturally there were some wizards running around studying physics and astronomy.)  
  
There were also questions like Dark Energy, which could be postulated in a similar manner from the Dark Matter as long as one didn't confuse it with necromantic or similar magic. There were quantum black holes and their larger cousins. The nature of gravity: was it a force as Newton theorized or a warp in the fabric of space-time as Einstein suggested. And if the latter, why did mass have that peculiar effect anyway?   
  
After decades of trying to work out a spell which would stop and collect enough neutrinos to actually determine what they were and how they'd look, Morgana was hoping that this little interlude would help inspire her.   
  
Yeah, yeah, another alien prince time traveller with magical powers and a bunch of girls after him. Boring! The elf prince sort of thing had been around for some time.   
  
Okay, the Mars colony was different. Tigergirls were also not done too much. The girl with the polearm *was* intriguing in a way. Snappy dresser too. Hmmmm.  
  
--------  
  
Greylle opened the door and blinked for a moment before motioning the girl in. "I not late you expecting is. What you up?"  
  
Hotaru nodded, her homework level was nearly overwhelming and she'd just been to Mars and back, but Fess had asked her to deliver this package. Unfortunately her English wasn't even as good as his Japanese. "-Fess deliver speak.-"  
  
Taking the package, Greylle determined it was three of the silver ingots he was supposed to be taking internally every so often as a dietary supplement for dragons of his breed. He'd have to switch to his larger form to swallow, much less digest them. "Thank you. Japanese you speak please."  
  
Hotaru wanted to say many things, ask many questions. Unfortunately, with the language barrier how could she even phrase them? "Sempai..."  
  
"Hotaru-chan?" Greylle looked her over. She was nervous about something. She also looked *very* different at 16. Something a little like Mistress 9, but without the ridiculously long hair and a far gentler manner.  
  
The young woman fidgeted as she considered what to do or say. Inside she was still twelve, or younger considering the amount of time she'd been influenced by Mistress 9. She wanted a friend very desperately, and a fiancee (if done properly) could be a friend you had a longterm agreement with. She was completely uncertain of how to proceed.  
  
Greylle took the girl's hand and led her into the tiny room, noting that she'd probably visited that makeover machine. Otherwise Hotaru wouldn't be wearing makeup normally. Not having any idea what to say to her, he simply went for the most obvious thing.   
  
Hotaru got even more nervous. Was this it? Would she be able to prove that she was *not* some kid sister? Would this hurt? She had some idea of what was required, even if she hadn't taken those classes and was a little vague on a lot of details.  
  
The dragon knew how to set Hotaru at ease. Though why she was blushing was a puzzle, there were things that he knew how to do. A nice hot cup of chamomile tea. There was an old Japanese proverb: "If a man has no tea in him, he is incapable of understanding truth and beauty." While he knew a few Westerners who might disagree, this *was* Japan. "In Tokyo wear a square hat," or however that other proverb went. The sharing of tea was a terribly important part of a number of Japanese social conventions.  
  
Hotaru found herself presented with a hot cup of some sort of tea, that her host had used a microwave to warm up. How terribly Western. No sense of ceremony at all. The idea that it might have been alcoholic and the disappointment that it was *not* were brief concerns that nonetheless managed to further confuse her.  
  
"It late, Hotaru. Time is..." Greylle went suddenly very still, his eyes wide.  
  
The sometimes Sailor Saturn blinked. The tea tasted okay to her. Greylle lapsed into English abruptly. Hotaru could only get a few words out of the babble.   
  
Greylle was suddenly excited as the whole thing clicked together. "-That's it! TIME is the answer! Sailor Moon was trying to manipulate time one way, Pluto was there and not where she could help out, there were distractions all over the darn place. Maybe an attack by a Dark General. They ended up stuck in time - suspended between moments as opposed to having their pasts rewritten as 'normal girls'. Stuck there they wouldn't be able to get free! If they're in zero time Pluto could have gotten them out, but she could only do it if she was *outside* the cage! Otherwise no time passing means they aren't even aware they're trapped!-"  
  
"I think I'm going to have to take Fess up on the offer of English lessons," said Hotaru. School was difficult enough having skipped four years. Now this. She tried a tentative smile back at her beaming fiance.  
  
"-What i'll need is some way of breaking through the timeslip, maybe if i cast a Dispel Magic and can get it amplified by the Silver Crystal...-" Greylle was working out angles enthusiastically while scribbling out a note. "Hotaru, take you note to base. Show there. Greylle get to base of Beryl on own but need transport for Senshi if we succeed. Understand?"  
  
Hotaru caught that, though Greylle's Japanese was getting difficult to understand. "You know where the Senshi are?" On seeing a tentative nod, Hotaru clapped her hands together in delight. She'd be getting more friends soon! "So we'll go on that camping trip next Sunday?"  
  
Greylle nodded, then wondered why Hotaru was blushing. Waitaminute. Wasn't "kyanpu" camping? Oh. Hotaru wanted to see him in dragonform. Well, that was understandable. Dragons were pretty cool.  
  
-------  
  
Mister and Mrs Tsukino had been a little put off by the meeting they'd arranged with their vanished daughter. Okay, more than "a little" put off.  
  
Shingo had tried teasing his big sister. She had raised an eyebrow and commented about how illogical that process was.  
  
Usagi had passed every test they could think of. This *was* their daughter. However the past year had changed her incredibly. This was only the third day that they had been together, and she was beginning to act a little more like the Usagi they knew.   
  
Except for her grades being nearly perfect. And excepting that she was extraordinarily calm. And an excellent cook, even if she tended to favor Thai dishes over Japanese. Or that she was graceful and agile in ways that their clumsy daughter could only have hoped to have been.  
  
That and while she admitted to being their daughter, she insisted that she was not the same daughter that they had known.  
  
It had taken a day and the help of one of Usagi's friends to convince her to come home with them. Three days after *that* and she was still surprising them.  
  
Shingo was frightened of her at first. This couldn't really be *his* big sister. As she slowly opened up, and became more openly affectionate, he gradually started warming to this big sister who knew so much more than he remembered.  
  
When she cut her finger, there had been no bawling, just a quick act to put a bandage over the wound and then clean the blood from the knife she'd been using.  
  
When Usagi ate it was a calm and dignified manner, chewing each piece of food precisely.  
  
However all three of the other Tsukino family members agreed that however weird it was, this was definitely a quieter Usagi in their midst.  
  
------  
  
Greylle had just let Hotaru out of his apartment and was wishing her goodbye when a rose slammed into the concrete and actually imbedded itself there. "-Hey! Watch it! You could hurt someone with that!-"  
  
Hotaru frowned. She didn't like people attacking her sempai.  
  
"That is my purpose!" The guy in top hat and tuxedo declared, cape blowing dramatically behind him. "How dare you add this innocent girl to your conquests! Enemy of women! Enslaver of innocents! You have gone on far enough!"  
  
Greylle blinked. "-I didn't catch that, but it sounded like Tatewaki Kuno's speeches being recycled.-"  
  
Tuxedo Kamen blinked. "Somehow I think I've just been insulted."  
  
Looking over the guy, Greylle had to admit that Tuxedo Kamen didn't look quite as ridiculous as he could have. Though wearing formal dinner attire to a fight didn't strike him as being terribly practical, Endymion had never been a front-line fighter. "-So what's your gripe with me anyway, Endymion?-"  
  
"-For enslaving the Senshi, perish monster!-" A rose was thrown.  
  
Greylle blocked it, then winced and pulled the stem out of his arm. Of course, as he was a dragon, there was a lot of blood.  
  
"Saturn Power, Make Up!" Hotaru thought it fairly silly that in this day and age she should get her superpowers through makeup, but she'd complain about it some other time.  
  
"She's a Senshi?!" Tuxedo Kamen stared for a moment. Then returned his attention to the evil monster who had done whatever he had done.  
  
"Sailor Saturn," Greylle held up a hand. "This fight mine is. Excuse me."  
  
Tuxedo Kamen was waiting for some energy attack, it was a typical youma ploy after all. Instead what he got was the boy conjuring up a baseball bat and racing forward. Kamen pulled his cane out of subspace. "Have at thee."  
  
-------  
  
Ranma froze as a concept that he had resisted for a long time finally forced itself into conscious consideration. Watching Akane the tigergirl had caused him to consider what his cursed form looked like.  
  
A catgirl?! For an ailurophobe, this was not a pleasant idea.  
  
This whole situation was decidedly weird to Ranma. Not that things hadn't turned weird before getting to Nerima, it had been Jusenkyo that had seen the weirdness escalate to insane levels.  
  
"Oh dear!" Kasumi tripped. Naturally she was carrying a glass of cold water.  
  
Ranma-kun vanished. Ranma-chan appeared. A trembling hand checked her ears. Yes, soft and mobile triangular ears. The other hand checked the tail while freeing it from the confines of his pants. Yup. Therefore...  
  
The catgirl screamed as if a lost soul. Cat = panic = got to get away. However *she* was the cat and therefore she couldn't get away. Therefore...  
  
Ranma had never gone into the catfist this quickly before. Lost and alone, the kitty looked around for someone trusted or at least liked. Since there was no one really present, it was time to leave.  
  
-------  
  
Hotaru watched as two skilled people briefly fenced. One using a baseball bat, the other using a cane. Hotaru watched as the superior strength of the bat-wielder launched the cane-wielder nearly the length of the floor.   
  
"-i don't want to fight you,-" Greylle told the boy.  
  
Tuxedo Kamen struggled to his feet. "I will do whatever I need to do to free Usagi."  
  
"-Fine, be at Beryl's cavern as soon as you can. i'm heading there myself immediately.-" Greylle turned to Hotaru. "Hotaru. Need Fess send transport base of Beryl to go."  
  
Hotaru silently added some kind of translation device to what needed to accompany them but nodded.  
  
With that, her fiance leapt over the railing and shifted, having remembered that silver dragons could polymorph to something other than a human form. Unfortunately he wasn't very good at it and the eagle was roughly the same mass as Hotaru.  
  
Hotaru quickly took the stairs, glancing back once at this attacker as he complained about not having a way to get to Beryl's island on his current budget.  
  
-------  
  
The evening had turned to night before he judged it safe to return to dragon. The dragon flew much faster, but could also use the leylines to "jump" along them.   
  
It was just beginning to lighten again when he caught sight of the island and was buzzed by a series of vehicles.  
  
One jet switched to gerwalk mode, revealing that Snoopy had probably been watching Macross. The yellow submarine landed in the snow and then tilted at a twenty degree angle. The jetcycles revealed that the Outer Senshi (minus Hotaru) had chosen something a bit faster than their internal flight mechanisms.   
  
Considering their relative speeds, the vehicles had already landed and their passengers disembarked before he could land.  
  
When he *did* land there was a sudden shooting pain in his side.  
  
Sailor Saturn threatened to use her Silence Glaive if the tuxedo wearer did that again.  
  
*i have to do this as a dragon,* Greylle sent to the group, noting that he still had his armband and the glowing stone embedded in his chest. He also had an armor piercing rose imbedded between two scales and was beginning to get quite upset with Mamoru Chiba.  
  
Akane sniffed all around his legs briefly before seeming to go off into deep thought.  
  
Greylle looked over the crowd and wondered exactly why everyone and their Great-Grandmother had come along.   
  
Cologne looked over the dragon and wondered exactly what she could do to add his genes to the village. The only people missing were most of the Sailor Marionettes and it looked like Sabre Mercury had brought Dr. Mizuno.  
  
Ukyo announced that unless something was going to happen *now* she was going back to sleep in the nice warm submarine.  
  
*Yes, well,* sent the dragon, *what i'm going to do is tricky and will require me to use the Eternal Silver Millenial Crystal (aka the Ginzuishou) to try to breach the time bubble.*  
  
"Return that Crystal to Sailor Moon!" Tuxedo Kamen tried to run forward and snatch it. It didn't come popping out to his hand, and shortly after that was obvious there began the most curious chase scene.  
  
Said chase scene consisted of Sailor Saturn chasing Tuxedo Kamen around, doing her level best to brain him with the business end of her Silence Glaive. Cologne watched for a moment before reaching out with the end of her stick and hitting a paralysis shiatsu point on both of them.  
  
"It's cold and it's early and I'm getting too old for this," Cologne informed everyone.  
  
*You Cologne? Getting old? Hah!* The dragon grinned down at the ancient Elder. *Just as well you're here though. Most likely this was just after a very nasty battle or it occurred at the very tail end of a long battle. So they'll either need medical attention or may come out of it still thinking they're in a fight. Everyone who can't dodge a mana bolt stay up here. i have to go into the cavern where the fight occurred to cast this at zero range for the maximum potential effect.*  
  
Cologne nodded, another glint in her eye. Yes, Sash would be a good choice for this dragon. Or perhaps Sugar. Salt and Pepper? She might be a three hundred plus year old traditionalist within the Chinese Amazons, but she found herself warming to this ice dragon. Having him marry into the tribe sounded like a good way to increase the strength of the tribe immensely. Besides, then she'd have someone to talk to who could live as long as she could.  
  
Greylle took a quick look around, then ducked into the cavern.  
  
=============  
  
OMAKE OMAKE OMAKE OMAKE  
  
"I am *not* Genma Saotome, nor will I portray him even in a simulation."   
  
"...but..." The black cat looked inquiringly up at the old man.  
  
"NO. Do you have *any* idea how dangerous my life is?"  
  
"...but..."  
  
"I've raised kids before you know. Can't you get Drizzt to do it?"  
  
"Why are you bringing *me* into this conversation, old man?"  
  
"How about I give both of you a major magic item and a promise of no interference for a hundred years?" Toltiir asked the two.  
  
The drow ranger looked tempted by the possibility of an Elder god of mischief being out of his hair for a century. Not that he had many funny slapstick adventures, but it didn't help his image to have to deal with "wackiness" or the like. "Joint custody? How about some of those Arrows Of Sunlight. Those *could* come in handy. No. Probably not."  
  
"*Absolutely* not. Do you know how many heroes I've sponsored since Myth Drannor?" Elminster frowned. "There is no way I'm taking on an apprentice at my age."  
  
"Well, neither of *them* could do nearly the job I could anyway," added another.  
  
Elminster and Drizzt glared at the newcomer. Neither really wanted to try and raise Ranma from the pit of cats and try to overcome Genma's influence. There was a little pride involved, however. "Prove it!"  
  
---------  
  
Yet Another Worse Father Than Genma? A continuing omake by gregg sharp.  
  
DISCLAIMER: Characters are by other people. Ranma 1/2 by Rumiko Takahashi. Elminster, Drizzt Do'Urden and the Forgotten Realms are by Ed Greenwood and TSR. Toltiir is by Toltiir.  
  
---------  
  
Ranma screamed. He screamed in pain. He screamed in fear. He screamed in just plain old desire not to be thrown back in the pit.  
  
The Catfist training was a turning point for Ranma Saotome in a number of ways.   
  
Prior to the Catfist he had doubts about blindly following his father's dictums. Prior to the Catfist he remembered that he had a mother. Prior to the Catfist he was still able to function as a multi-layered human being. Prior to the Catfist Ranma Saotome was not exclusively devoted to the martial arts.  
  
After the Catfist Ranma would go on to excel in pride and arrogance, eschewing all other activities than martial arts. After the Catfist Ranma would forget his mother and other people would come to touch his heart less and less. He would close his ability to care for others, it was a tough world and unforgiving - full of cruelty designed to make one stronger. Pain was there to make one stronger.  
  
So, as Genma got ready to throw his son into a pit of hungry cats for the second time, it was an excellent time for an interruption.  
  
Genma threw the screaming child into the pit and turned to where he had put the bottle of sake. He was hoping the stupid boy would hurry up and learn the unbeatable manuever and...  
  
Genma stopped. He couldn't actually have seen what he *thought* he saw, could he?  
  
The obese Saotome patriarch turned around and cautiously peered into the bottom of the pit.  
  
Except the bottom of the pit didn't seem to actually be there.   
  
Genma even more cautiously went to the edge of pit and stared for a few moments more before he finally summed it up. "My god, it's full of stars..."  
  
----------  
  
Genma began wandering after that. While he had watched the floor had reappeared. No cats. No Ranma.  
  
His reason for wandering was quite simple.  
  
He couldn't face a regular job. He was firmly convinced that anything approaching real work was demeaning to a man of his nature. Genma was also quite uncertain of what to do now as his plans had been developed and set for years.  
  
First he would dump his wife and responsibilities to train Ranma to be a superior martial artist. Then he would go off to his old buddy Soun, marry Ranma off to one of those daughters, the son and daughter would then operate the dojo and lead to Genma's long and comfortable retirement.  
  
No son. Therefore no ten years of training, therefore no marriage, therefore no comfortable retirement. Therefore Genma had to go back to his wife and get a job. Providing she didn't kill him or require seppuku.  
  
This was clearly not acceptable.  
  
So Genma had eventually found a nice bar where he was on his fourth bottle of sake, trying to come up with a way of compensating for a son who had vanished.  
  
The best ideas he'd come up with so far had been: a) just going off and forgetting about this and starting over again with a new wife and child; b) a replacement Ranma; c) going to visit his old buddy Soun and divorce Nodoka and marry one of Soun's daughters. So far "C" was beginning to look quite appealing and it would unite the two families.  
  
"Ah, Mister Saotome," said a woman sliding into the barstool next to Genma.   
  
Genma blinked. This wasn't a bill collector was she? She certainly wasn't dressed for a seedy bar in downtown Kobe.  
  
"I was wondering if a deal could be made between you and I regarding your son," the woman said to him, then spoke to barkeep. "Tea, green, hot."  
  
Genma considered as he reached for bottle #5. He didn't *have* Ranma, Ranma was *gone*. The entire pit have been filled with a deep darkness and lots of stars. When the strange image had passed there had been no Ranma so it wasn't like he was doing anything *wrong* by selling Ranma. He'd sold Ranma off before anyway so it wasn't a big deal. "Well, my son is very valuable."  
  
"For the next ten years I'm interested in training your son to be a sort of bodyguard to a very important individual," the woman said quietly but somehow over the noise of the bar.  
  
"Ah, well he can't neglect his studies in the martial arts," said Genma. "Very important."  
  
"I'm willing to pay a considerable sum," said the woman, regarding him briefly with the most unnerving reddish eyes.  
  
"How much?"  
  
The woman reached into her purse and withdrew a small stack of papers. "You'll find the pertinent figures there on the first page."  
  
"Well, I don't know my boy is... SOLD!" Genma quickly looked for the line to sign on. He didn't have the boy anyway and he could at least get this woman to pay his bar tab.  
  
The woman seemed amused as Genma signed and pressed his hanko into the appropriate places. "Fine. Fine. Here's the payment in full."  
  
Genma's eyes popped as the woman lifted an attache case and set it in front of Genma. He couldn't believe his luck! By the time this idiot woman realized he didn't have Ranma he'd be long gone. "Uhm, so. I guess I'll bring Ranma by here tomorrow."  
  
The woman had already drank her tea and gotten up, looking back over her shoulder at the portly man. "Oh, I've already taken possession of the merchandise."  
  
"Fine, fine," said Genma, not really paying attention as he popped the case open.  
  
"Well, we witnessed it," said one of the young men nearby, getting up to leave with the woman.  
  
"First time I've seen an engagement arrangement work so smoothly," said another.  
  
"Huh?" Genma said, suddenly beginning to realize that something was wrong as photographers snapped photos and he realized someone had videotaped the whole proceeding. Well, let them. He'd outsmarted all of them.  
  
"Genma Saotome?"  
  
Genma shut the case slowly having recognized that voice. Slowly he turned.  
  
This crowd of people he did recognize. He'd stolen from most of them. Oh dear.  
  
------  
  
10 years later:  
  
Soun snipped the envelope, wondering why someone would send him a videotape.  
  
He put it in and immediately wept with joy to see his old friend Genma on there. His old friend... wait a minute. Soun turned the sound up.  
  
Almost sleepwalking, he went back to the package and pulled out the photos and laid them aside. The thirty page legal document drew his attention.  
  
"GENMAAAAAAAAA!"  
  
----------  
  
Nodoka wondered why someone would send her a videotape.  
  
She watched it, rewound it, played it again. There was really only one thing she could say about this.  
  
"Where's my sharpening stone?"  
  
--------  
  
Genma, currently breaking rocks in a Japanese prison for repeated petty theft and assault on a police officer, felt a chill go down his back and thanked the kami he was in a nice safe prison under an assumed name.  
  
--------  
  
Setsuna Meiou merely smiled as she looked over her own copy of the document. Which stated, among other things, that the contract superceded all previous negotiations and rendered them null and void. That basically, if the contract was broken by Genma, she would have ended up owning the Saotome family assets down to the last nickel and putting them into debt beyond their ability to pay.  
  
Ranma continued to flow through a complicated kata from where he was, not concerned.  
  
He'd read the contract years ago and seen the tape. His father had sold him off. Ranma had come to terms with those events.  
  
In the meantime he'd trained long and hard for what he knew to be an important job.  
  
Yojimbo. Bodyguard. An old and noble profession, one that many ronin had undertaken over many years. He had a new clan and had been trained by some of the best of the best.  
  
He still had to meet the Tendos, apparently Meiou-oneechan felt that it was important to personally apologize for the oversight of his father. He was tempted to bring his iinazuke along, but that might cause problems.  
  
Finishing by drawing ki in from his surroundings to replenish the energy he'd expended, Ranma readied himself for the coming confrontation.  
  
-------  
  
Nabiki held the door open as she looked over this stranger come calling. Tall, with a lithe muscular look that bespoke of a career in gymnastics or martial arts. This guy wasn't cute, he instead had the sort of lean roguish good looks that could have made a fortune in the modeling business. "Uhm, hello."  
  
"Good evening, Miss. I am here to speak with Soun Tendo," said the youth, bowing formally and politely.  
  
Nabiki looked over the guy some more, enjoying what she was seeing. Not only was he built quite attractively, but he was dressed pretty nicely too. "Daddy is..." How to say that her father was a blubbering wreck?  
  
"I understand," said the youth. "It is regarding that matter I wished to speak with him."  
  
"Oh my," said Kasumi as she arrived. "A guest. I'm sorry but Father isn't really up to visitors right now."  
  
"Ah, you're the eldest daughter?" On seeing her nod, the youth bowed again. "In that case, I tender my deepest apologies to you as representitive of your father. My name is Ranma Saotome."  
  
There was a brief moment of silence, broken a moment later by the trampling of feet as the Tendo patriarch lunged for the door.  
  
Unfortunately, Kasumi and Nabiki were still occupying the door.  
  
*CRASH* *TRAMPLE!*  
  
"Oops." "Ouch." "Owie."  
  
Ranma looked down at the tangle. "Uhm, should I get a doctor?"  
  
--------  
  
"This is Kasumi, she's 20. This is Nabiki, she's 18. This is Akane, she's 17."  
  
"This is Ranma," said Ranma, "who is already engaged. You've got a copy of the contract."  
  
"The Tendo arrangement predates that one," began Soun again.  
  
"While this one specifically states it takes precedence over all pre-existing ones," said Ranma in a perfectly reasonable tone. "Besides, me and Mako-chan get along really well."  
  
"B-b-b-but?!" Soun privately cursed Genma for not being here.  
  
Akane was mollified somewhat. This boy wasn't trying to get engaged and was sincerely not interested. She had enough trouble with Tatewaki Kuno, who had finally gone all out and beaten her and was now insisting that they were engaged. The thing was, as soon as Kuno had offered money to her father, the engagement had been formalized pending only one thing. This boy was her last chance to avoid the engagement to Tatewaki Kuno.   
  
Nabiki had slowly lost interest. She'd love the chance to get out of Nerima but she'd be going off to a college in Juuban soon anyway.  
  
Kasumi looked over the boy with a certain interest. Doctor Tofu had moved away halfway through the year, still unable to bring himself to any sort of coherency in her presence. He wasn't interested in gaining a fiancee, which was a pity, but certainly nothing she could affect. Still it was worth a moment of pleasant fantasy. Nabiki would be off to college soon, and then Akane possibly. Then she'd be free. Free to do what was a good question.  
  
Ranma shrugged helplessly. "I'm just here to apologize on behalf of my birth-father. I've got quite a full day ahead of me so I'll just be going."  
  
"B-b-b-but..." Soun desperately sought for something to say that would keep the boy here.  
  
--------  
  
"So you see, I make a better father than Genma," declared Sailor Pluto as the on-screen Ranma fled. "Ranma is a trained martial artist and bodyguard of the Princess - so he's got a career."  
  
"Akane ends up being kidnapped by Kodachi for 'bridal training' for her brother," noted Bast. "Looks uncomfortable."  
  
"Makoto Kino gets a sempai and a fiance she can keep, Ranma gets a girl who can understand him and who enjoys cooking." Toltiir nodded. "It's a good match: they have enough in common for common ground but not so much that they're competing in everything. With overlapping duties, they mesh well professionally and personally even with his occasional lapses into foot in mouth disease."  
  
"Soun doesn't give up on the Tendo marriage concept," pointed out Bast. "Akane may be out of the running, and Nabiki is off at college, that leaves one daughter he can push towards Ranma. Looks like she doesn't do too well as a seductress - gets too embarassed too easily."  
  
"I have trouble with this image of you as a matchmaker, Pluto." Toltiir looked towards the Senshi of Time. "You don't seem quite the sort. Venus I could see."  
  
Sailor Pluto shrugged slightly. "Why do I always have to be the mysterious no-fun by-the-book manipulative sort? Can't I engage in something where people are happier at the end of the game?"  
  
"It's just... odd," admitted Bast.  
  
"AH!" Toltiir pounced as he selected a scene. "Oh HO."  
  
Bast repeatedly blinked, then grinned. "Ah HAH."  
  
Pluto colored slightly and tried to look dignified.  
  
"Gave yourself a lemon scene, did you?" Toltiir smirked. "Romantic subplot and kids and the whole nine yards, eh?"  
  
Pluto shrugged again. "Hey. Nobody said I couldn't have fun, did they?" 


	13. Chapter 13: Stealing Bases

Retake  
  
Chapter 13: Stealing bases  
  
---------  
  
The first dome on Mars had been named "Sabashii" the Japanese word for loneliness. At the time it was fairly appropriate.  
  
The easiest thing to build had been the landing dock. Processing rock to gravel and then melting it and finally trimming it to a flat surface. A nice big one for visitors.   
  
A set of bathrooms and a Roman style bathing house was placed adjacent to the port because the Workspiders thought that based on what they understood of human psychology - being cooped up in a spacecraft for several months to get here would tend to place both on the high end of priorities.  
  
Further on were the airlocks and finally the dome itself. Soil, another thing that could not currently be manufactured on Mars, had been imported and spread. One could enter Sabashii and believe one had stepped back a few hundred years, to find a warm summery place with fields of real grass growing underfoot and orchards of trees surrounding an apartment/office complex. The building itself made of fused rock that had been sculpted and colored to resemble wood. Mainly because one of the Workspiders had decided that wood would be comforting to humans.  
  
Or at least would be. Right now it was still being constructed. Seeds were being planted and tended to by robotic gardeners. Carefully purified water was fed in drip tubes precisely to where it could do the most good.  
  
Of course, it was understood that not every visitor was necessarily friendly. In which case the mass drivers being constructed could be put to a slightly different purpose.  
  
------  
  
Greylle was conscious of a crowd following him down. It didn't really surprise him that he wasn't going to get his way with this group.  
  
That was about all the attention he could spare anyway. This was like threading a needle while riding crosscountry on horseback.  
  
No, actually it was more difficult than that.  
  
The Crystal seemed to be fighting him and trying to just raw power through the obstacle. That this would leave a lot of dead Senshi didn't seem to carry any weight with the Crystal.  
  
Dispel Magic was a 3rd level spell as far as clerics were concerned. As near as he could tell, the time-fold would have been right where Sailor Moon had stood in her battle with Metal'la. Which would have been a few feet from where he stood now. As a time-fold was something he could not directly perceive, what he had to do was use the Crystal to sight along while using the same power focus to increase his own power level to where it could do some good.  
  
Tendrils of magic went out and reached *something* and slid off. Greylle changed his analogy, this was like picking an invisible lock whose parts made no noise.   
  
There. A tendril of abjuration magic found a flaw and worried at it, the flaw increasing in size as he focussed more upon the "seam" or imperfection in the field.  
  
With a shudder, the containment field failed as the ginzuishou flared brightly. Greylle lurched from the absolute concentration as suddenly the resistance failed. Bodies started raining down.  
  
"Ouchie," quoth Sailor Moon. Who looked up then and screamed.  
  
------  
  
Commandoes quietly filtered into the school, checking and finding various accessways. Shaped charges were applied by skilled hands. Tiny explosions followed.  
  
Fess noted the intrusion and dispatched the first line of defense. Actual use would have to wait until it could be determined if more polite methods could convince the intruders to leave. According to the legal database, deadly force could only be used if other options were not allowed. "Gentlemen. You are intruding on private property. Leave immediately."  
  
Kasumi yawned, having politely declined the offer of going to freeze off portions of her anatomy. Seeing lights flash red, she looked out into the corridor to see large men dressed entirely in black and carrying assault rifles. "Oh my, guests."  
  
One of the figures immediately shot at the girl in the frilly apron and housedress.  
  
Fess acted. Robots the size of mosquitoes dove in and delivered their payload.  
  
-------  
  
It was perhaps traditional in American comic books. Good guy group A meets Good guy group B and the first thing they did was get into an open melee.  
  
Greylle liked a lot of traditions, but didn't care for this one at all.  
  
"Dead Scream!" slammed into crossed bonbori and sent Shampoo flying. "Fire Soul" incinerated throwing spatulas. "World Shaking" was dodged by a tigergirl who was *really* upset about this and couldn't we just talk it over like civilized people? Lightning arced from a girl in green to a dragon in silver. "Crescent Beam" was fired at a girl with short hair who used some force field to block it?!   
  
Hotaru had had enough of this as soon as a "Supreme Thunder" had hit scales. How DARE someone attack her boyfriend after he'd just saved their collective fannies! "Silence Glaive Surprise!"  
  
Sailor Jupiter had enough time to blink in surprise as someone in a Sailor fuku not that dissimilar from her own imbedded her into a wall. (Yes, Hotaru *was* holding back.)  
  
"Sailor Saturn!" Sailor Pluto cried out as this particular combatant came to her attention. Yes, she knew about the Senshi of Silence. "The Senshi of Destruction!"  
  
"The end of the world!" Sailor Uranus reacted in considerable shock as she realized the most dangerous combatant they faced was not the big scaly one.  
  
"How can she be here?!" Sailor Neptune exclaimed. "What... URK!"  
  
Cologne had seen enough of this. Frankly, the antics of the young could be quite amusing. Right now she was cold and the snow was soaking through her shoes, and she had better things to do. Having hit Sailor Neptune's paralysis points, she flipped over and descended towards Sailor Uranus like an old bat out of hell.  
  
Sailor Pluto summoned her power around her. She had to make this shot count or they were all dead! "Dead Scr-!" *THWAM!*  
  
*You know, Setsuna, if you keep this crap up i'm going to have to put you over my knee and spank you!*  
  
Being pinned beneath one foreclaw into the snow and rubble that was all that currently remained of Beryl's base, Sailor Pluto was suitably stunned. Mainly by the impact of the considerable weight. Fifty two feet of dragon was not exactly a light burden.  
  
"World..." "Fire!" *THUD!* *THUD!*  
  
As Sailor Uranus, paralyzed, and Sailor Mars, unconscious, simultaneously hit the ground - Cologne and Akane gave each other a nod of approval.  
  
Sailor Moon was still being given her "welcome back" kiss by Mamoru and might not have even noticed the battle that she'd precipitated.  
  
Sailor Mercury and Sailor Venus went back to back, outnumbered and obviously outpowered.  
  
"AMI MIZUNO! JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, YOUNG LADY?"  
  
Sailor Mercury fell over and then looked at who was approaching under a full head of steam. "M-mom?! I mean..."  
  
Sailor Venus stared as her teammate was being berated by her mother. Looking around she noticed that she was being eyed by a large dragon, a girl in a purple seifuku, a floating girl in a pageboy haircut, a tigergirl, a *second* Sailor Mercury, a very miffed looking purple haired girl, another girl with a really big spatula, and a Macross veritech that had unlimbered its big gun. She felt a tap on her back and noticed there was a yoma?!   
  
"Now dearie, do you want to do the reasonable thing and surrender so that we can go somewhere warm and talk this situation out?" Cologne asked reasonably of the last Senshi in anything like combat readiness.  
  
Sailor Venus nodded and put up her hands. "You won't get away with this!"  
  
"With what?" Cologne responded curiously.  
  
"With... with whatever it is you're trying to do!" Sailor Venus was quite unsure of herself now. There was absolutely no evidence of Rainbow Crystals being stolen or energy being sucked off. This was quite unlike the typical experience she'd gone through as Sailor Venus.  
  
"Hey!" Sailor Moon finally recovered enough of her wits after that kiss to notice the battle scene. "What's going on here anyway?!"  
  
------  
  
"Mister President?"  
  
The 1992 American President looked up at his aide. "Is this very important? I am somewhat occupied."  
  
The aide fidgeted. "Sir, about that little matter?"  
  
The American President thought of what that technology could do to his re-election possibilities. "I'll see you later."  
  
The aide and the President watched as the girl got up and left the room, clearly disappointed.  
  
"Go ahead," said the President after the door was closed.   
  
"The strike team located and entered the base. They..." The Aide swallowed and began looking more nervous.  
  
"If they were caught, I've never heard of them." American politics was dominated by who could lie the most convincingly. Faking sincerity was the road to success.  
  
"Sir, they want to speak to you." The Aide really began looking nervous. "They're in contact with NASA right now."  
  
"NASA?" Having never cared for that agency, the President briefly wondered why they were involved. Too many civilians for it to be properly secure. Though he disliked the military, they were at least useful and capable of keeping secrets.  
  
"Sir? A videotape of them breaking, entering, and shooting an unarmed civilian has been sent to all major news media. Plus the team is currently en route to the Asteroid Belt."  
  
"Why?"  
  
The Aide shrugged helplessly.  
  
The President started considering. Unprovoked assault on Americans? There would be a way of putting the spin on things that would give him access to the wealth of knowledge now in Japan. And with that, his party could at last rise to dominance across the board.  
  
-------  
  
"We *will* discuss this in more detail later, Ami." Japanese did not air their differences in public, after all. Besides, she was going to build up steam again for round two. Doctor Mizuno was at the very least going to have a few words to her daughter about getting legwarmers or something for that outfit.  
  
Ami nodded and looked like she wanted to vanish through the floor.  
  
Ami II merely continued loading information into her database regarding posture and general movements.  
  
"I don't trust them, they're NOT of the Silver Millenium," began Sailor Uranus.  
  
*You know something, Haruka, you're beginning to sound like Luna.* The dragon 'pathed. Then shifted in the snow to become someone who looked an awful lot like a silver-eyed Terry Bogart. "But then you were a jerk in the Silver Millenium too." Basalt was gone, dead,   
  
Sailors Jupiter and Venus STARED with the usual effect of the sudden appearance of a cute guy in their midst.  
  
Sailor Uranus frowned, trying to figure out how this boy/lizard knew her.  
  
"Children," Cologne said, eyeing the dragon and including him in that term, "if we can get back to Japan without squabbling much more?"  
  
"We could Sailor Teleport, I suppose..." Sailor Moon said, casting an eye towards where she knew the ginzuishou was currently out of reach. She tried calling it.  
  
Ignoring how Sailor Moon was now pointing her hand at him and mumbling something about the ginzuishou, Greylle cleared his throat. "Take one of the ships, you people have been in several magical battles of late, you can use the time to catch up and figure out what you're going to do to explain your absence for over a year."  
  
"What? That couldn't..." Sailor Pluto looked around as if consulting something only she could see. "Oh no..."  
  
"Why's everyone looking at me?" Sailor Moon asked in a small voice.  
  
"It's not her fault," said Greylle, "there's an awful lot of things that can go wrong and it isn't as if the ginzuishou comes with an instruction manual."  
  
Usagi smiled at her defender then visibly recalled that he was a big carnivorous lizard.  
  
"So when are you going to return the ginzuishou to Sailor Moon?" Tuxedo Kamen wasn't quite as upset at the dragon as he had been, but still wasn't precisely happy.   
  
"Unfortunately the bloody thing has grafted itself on. If you can think of a method of removal that doesn't kill me, feel free to suggest it," grumbled Greylle. Why did every royal come to the conclusion that attitude was job one?  
  
"You're going on the submarine with me and your double," said Doctor Mizuno to her daughter.  
  
"...yes mother..."  
  
"One person can ride with Snoopy," suggested Greylle with a gesture towards the Gerwalk configuration Valkyrie fighter. "The rest can take the Yellow Submarine. i'll fly back, but the most i can carry is two or three people for that distance. It'll take longer too, i'm just not as fast as either vehicle."  
  
"It might be better if you simply maintained your human form and held onto the railing of the sub," suggested Ami II. "You did put a considerable amount of energy into freeing the Senshi."  
  
"i can still do it, and if i accepted a ride it might be considered breaking my agreement," argued Greylle. "Since i'll have to start out first, who's with me?"  
  
"Sempai!" Hotaru shot her hand up.  
  
"No, Hotaru, you've got school. i won't get there nearly fast enough." Greylle blinked as Hotaru started pouting.  
  
"You're a Sailor Senshi?" Sailor Moon looked towards the dark haired girl, then at the nod began to gush enthusiastically about how good it was to find more reinforcements and what friends they'd be.  
  
Greylle winced at the hurt look from Hotaru now. Well, best they figure out about that deal now. Hopefully they wouldn't have Hotaru adopted by two people who originally had wanted to kill her, the way it had been in the TV series. That arrangement had never made any sense to him.  
  
"I'll return to the Time Gate on my own," announced Sailor Pluto, fitting action to words.  
  
"Man, she's got a *major* attitude this incarnation," said Greylle companionably.  
  
"There were dragons in the Silver Millenium?" Sailor Moon asked of Tuxedo Kamen, who merely shrugged in reply.  
  
"Nah, i was just Princess Jupiter's boyfriend until she dumped me," said Greylle, though technically that wasn't true anymore. It was like reading it in a fanfic or something, he didn't feel a personal involvement. Oh well, just something else he'd have to sort out.  
  
Sailor Jupiter's eyes were HUGE at this point.  
  
Akane, feeling some odd tigerish territorial urge, went up and stood next to her alien prince boyfriend. Accidently rubbing against him and thereby leaving her scent there. Not that she was really interested, mind you.  
  
"Well, i'll leave you to settle the arrangements since it looks like i'm flying solo again," said Greylle, shifting forms again and taking wing. Not that he was freaking out from having Akane rubbing herself up against him.  
  
-------  
  
"This is Sachi Nakamura, Channel 5 News. We're interviewing the girl who was shot, a Kasumi Tendo of Nerima Japan. Miss Tendo, what were you doing down there in a top secret base?"  
  
Kasumi glanced nervously at the camera, then back at the reporter. "Fixing breakfast, actually."  
  
"You weren't armed were you?" The reporter pressed.   
  
"Oh my, no. That would be wrong. Besides, I'm just a guest." Kasumi looked scandalized at the thought of herself toting a gun.  
  
"So you were in the middle of fixing breakfast when these strangers showed up," Sachi asked. "How did they react?"  
  
The eldest Tendo daughter looked into the eye of the camera. Her lower lip trembled. Eyes teared up. "I didn't realize what was going on. I just was going to say hello and return to fixing the miso soup. Then... they shot me." Her voice indicated that the physical wound was not the most painful one.  
  
The camera dipped down to where one arm was in a sling and the girl was sitting in a wheelchair, then back up to her face. A tear trickled down.  
  
At that moment, in the hearts of a vast number of people watching the broadcast, decisions were made that those responsible should be ripped into tiny little fragments.   
  
Actually, by tomorrow, it wouldn't be necessary for any action at all.  
  
--------  
  
With television being piped in, it was rapidly apparent even to Usagi Tsukino, particularly with backup from Mamoru Chiba. Over a year had passed, though it had passed them by.  
  
The reactions to this were largely quiet.  
  
"Nice going, meatball head!"  
  
Though there were some predictable exceptions.  
  
Minako Aino kept looking from Ami Mizuno to Ami II and finally asked the obvious question. "Uhm, does that mean we've *all* got duplicates?"  
  
Ami II glanced at her. "Yes. We were developed to cover for you as replacement Senshi. We are the Sailor Marionette team."  
  
Mass blinking from the Sailor Senshi as they started working on that.   
  
"Uhm, what's a 'marionette'?" Ami asked finally.  
  
"An android replica, though the Senshi team has displaced souls from a series of nearby alternate timelines," Ami II said and tapped her chest. "The soul matrix resides in a special containment unit - necessary as the bodies we possessed in those timelines were destroyed."  
  
"Beryl *killed* you?" Haruka asked, eyes slitted. She didn't trust androids either.  
  
"No, most of us died facing Galaxia and what was left of us melted down in the Galaxy Cauldron," said Ami II dispassionately. She might as well have been discussing a tide chart for all the emotion she showed.  
  
"Who's Galaxia?" Usagi wanted to know.  
  
"Normally, the path to Crystal Tokyo would see you face several enemies, each several times stronger than the one before," Ami II told the Senshi, ignoring how Cologne was furiously writing all this down. Nor how others were listening closely themselves. "Beryl is followed by others: the minions of the Doom Tree, Pharoah 90, Nemesis, the Dark Moon kingdom, the second coming of Nehelenia, and finally Galaxia. In searching records we have found that in most timelines this pattern may be scrambled slightly but is prevelant in 95% of all timelines leading to Crystal Tokyo. It is Galaxia which kills us most often."  
  
"What about me?" Hotaru wanted to know.  
  
Ami II raised an eyebrow. "You are working with the Senshi when Uranus and Neptune kill you and Sailor Pluto in 87% of the timelines. In 35% of those timelines they gain a momentary advantage over Galaxia as a result of their plot."  
  
Haruka considered denying it, but a 35% chance of victory *was* better than none.  
  
"Of course, in the records, we also find one timeline visited by Shard-san as Basalt where he found out that his 'little sister' Hotaru and 'girlfriend' Setsuna were killed by you and he manages to strangle Haruka with a weapon called a Nebula Chain." Ami II calculated a high percentage of probability that such tactics attempted in this timeline might well result in a missing Sailors Uranus and Neptune and a dragon with a tummyache. Despite the loss of the Basalt identity.  
  
Haruka made a note that if such tactics absolutely became necessary, killing the dragon before word got back to it was a priority.  
  
"So, waitaminute, you're saying that this Galactica is so powerful we get totally sucked away?"  
  
"That's 'blown away', Minako," corrected Rei. "And the us that are in that other universe..."  
  
"Were reincarnated when Greylle-sama used a spell to try and free you earlier but ended up miscasting due to his own difficulties and areas of influence." Ami II shrugged slightly. "I find the entire thing fascinating and being reincarnated into an android shell is somewhat odd but tolerable considering the potential alternatives."  
  
"So maybe we can sneak up on the bad guys and do a pre-emptive strike while they're not ready," suggested Makoto hopefully.  
  
"Unlikely," said Ami II. "South of Tokyo has already been detected a power level in excess of Beryl or even Pharoah 90. It is at least Galaxia level. Chances of being able to overwhelm it through simple surprise are infinitesimal at your current power output. It is suggested you do everything you can to avoid this confrontation."  
  
Haruka and Michiru looked up at the display thoughtfully.  
  
Makoto, Rei, Usagi, Hotaru, and Minako all having much less desire to immediately dive into danger, listened more carefully.   
  
Ami was still wondering how long she'd be grounded for this.  
  
--------  
  
The worst thing that could happen in a town like Washington DC suddenly occurred. Across the length and breadth of the city, tiny little bugs flitted along and landed on skin. Chemicals were released, and the bugs flew away and self destructed harmlessly.  
  
Except the harm was being done by that released payload.  
  
The chemicals released stimulated certain regions of the brain. While brain chemistry varied wildly from individual to individual, the bugs had been designed to seek out those whose chemical signature matched their ideal target.  
  
For 24 hours, in the city of Washington DC, nobody could tell a lie. Not Republicans, not Democrats, not members of the news media, not drugpushers, not lawyers. No segment of society was spared.  
  
The riots started one hour later.  
  
----------  
  
To go from dragon to human wasn't a big thing. From flying to stopped not a problem. Teleporting was less easy and fairly new, but with ley lines and being an Aramarian silver - not unheard of.  
  
Having all three occur when oneself had not initiated any of them *was* one of those things to immediately get a Problem flag.  
  
Which left him human in some ornate drawing room, a fire burning merrily in the fireplace, sort of what he'd expect a vaguely European drawing room to look like. Everything screamed expensive to his own admittedly unsophisticated tastes.  
  
A man entered the room and moved to sit behind a thick desk made of dark wood. Thin, slender, wearing a dark red suit that looked expensive. Little pencil thin moustache. First thought was the guy looked like a lawyer or accountant.   
  
"We need to talk, Greylle Shard, draconic priest of Crossover Catgirls, frequent target of Toltiir's machinations." The man spoke quite confidently and with a condescending attitude that caused a momentary pulse of resentment within his audience. Smarmy was a good term to describe this fellow. "Stop your probing of my location."  
  
Greylle winced. This was the guy whose power level was so outrageous. Who apparently knew exactly what and who he was. Still, this guy's voice had dropped slightly on mentioning the Cat Of Mischief, aka Coyote. So...  
  
"Yes, that's correct. While I could eliminate you from existence without any concern or effort on my part, having Toltiir paying undue attention to me would be... inconvenient." The man's tone of voice also said distasteful.  
  
Greylle considered. Sounded like he knew Toltiir personally. Was opposed to him. Huge power level. Wears red. Lawyer or... Uh oh.  
  
"For a mortal with a respective IQ of a flatworm you occasionally manage," noted the "lawyer." "I am prepared to make a deal."  
  
In the Aramarian pantheon had been nine Greater powers or deities, each of whom espoused a particular philosophy of life which was the basis for the "alignment system" of mortals. Toltiir the god of Mischief represented Chaotic Neutral. Etragar the Healer was Neutral Good. The current holder of the point where Law met Evil was Ankokou The Usurper. Following a Godswar where the gods of that pantheon had taken mortal form and the previous holder of the office had been destroyed. Except that an Elder god transcended the rules of life and death and the like, and the whole thing had just been a sort of contest among them anyway. Which meant that the previous holder of the Lawful Evil point of the alignment wheel had basically been voted out of office and could now wait for the re-election. The god of conquerers, assassins, and slavery whose philosophy could best be summed up as "the strong dominate or destroy the weak". Warnas Redsword, the Aramarian god of war.  
  
"I prefer 'evolution favors the strong'," corrected the Elder god. "My deal is simple. I understand that you and your sense of morality would eventually draw you like a moth to the flame or a lemming to the sea, and you would try to oppose me. I am here to rest and bide my time. I am less than a shadow of myself at present, and so have withdrawn my power into a cube one mile across while I partake of the sweet nectar of negative emotions that humanity puts out. Put simply enough that even your mind can grasp it, I will cease all actions outside my cube, so long as you stay outside it yourself. You and your minions both mechanical and otherwise. I have no desire nor reason to conquer this world, turn it inside out, or defend it for that matter. You have no reason to oppose me, nor do I have a reason to particularly care about your little activities."  
  
Greylle swallowed nervously. Beings who could turn the sun inside out on a casual whim could have that effect on him.   
  
"You have other opponents and menaces to deal with anyway." Warnas made an off hand gesture towards the table.  
  
The dragon had seen this game before. It was *sort of* like chess. Except it was played by more than two people, anywhere from three to six people. Alliances could be forged between two or more of the players, special in-session rules applied. Backstabbing and assassination were valid strategies to use, and there was more than one chessboard level involved. This particular game was set up for five players.  
  
The "pawns" on his side were the Sailor Marionettes, depicted as such by a clockwork key in their backs. In the back were an obviously cyborg Nabiki as Rook, Kasumi as Bishop, Akane tiger as a Knight, Hotaru in her Senshi garb was Queen, himself as dragon the King, then Ranma as the Knight on the other side, Yuka and Sayuri in their hardsuits as another Bishop, Ukyo was the far Rook.  
  
Queen Serenity and King Endymion were the King and Queen of the second side. Mars, Mercury, and Venus as one side's Rook, Bishop, Knight. The other side had Pluto, Neptune, Uranus. Their pawns were three mooncats directly in front of the two rulers and Venus. Umino and Naru were there on the same space, their pose suggesting nervousness, and there were three others including Unazuki that Greylle recognized as being connected to the Senshi.  
  
Cologne had the third side's Queen position. There was no one in the King position. He didn't immediately recognize any of the pawns that occupied the front row, who were all Amazons from their raiment. He'd crossed paths with the Amazons a few times, and so recognized Vanilla, Sash, and Sugar on one side. The other side being Shampoo, Mint, and the odd team of Salt and Pepper as the Rook. He figured out that the "pawns" represented Perfume, Tigar, Lotion, Frost, and the rest he still couldn't place.  
  
The fourth group was more amorphous. Those looked like the Witches 5, but mixed among them was the whole Dead Moon group and some of the Nemesis crew. It looked from the way the chess pieces were depicted, that a good breeze would start a civil war. Various daimon or yoma stood as the pawns.  
  
The fifth and final group was Galaxia and her crew.  
  
Off to the side, not on any of the boards was a large mixed crew of statuettes that he recognized some of and didn't recognize others. Doctor Mizuno was there, as was a drummer girl he'd briefly known in another life, there was no third or fourth series involved at least.  
  
While he watched, Ranma disentangled from his side to join the "Undecided" - joined by Akane, Shampoo, and Ukyo a moment later. Kodachi, still in that pile, gravitated to his side. Ranma's place on Greylle's side was taken by the Arcadia. Ukyo's position as King's Rook was taken by Rei Ayanami with a to-scale version of the Lance Of Longinus.  
  
The set up was obvious, as it no doubt was intended to be. His side were his allies, and subject to change without notice as all such games of this kind were. In the game he'd seen played on boards in a star lounge in Federation Space, computers or cards could be played to simulate chances of driving off or bribing the pieces of another side.   
  
The Sailor Senshi were going to try for Crystal Tokyo. Cologne was on her own side. If any of the others could offer a better deal for her Amazons and their village, she'd ally with them.   
  
The fourth side were the usual menaces that would face the Senshi. If the Senshi would tolerate allies in those battles, they'd likely have help from his group *and* Cologne's group. The fifth group was sufficient that any of the four previous groups might well abandon their problems to deal with this new menace collectively. Though there was one of the "Unclaimed" pieces that looked an awful lot like Morgana LeFey, but she wasn't around in this timeline was she?  
  
"These are your problems," said Warnas. "Frankly, I don't think you need to cross me."  
  
Greylle winced. He didn't have a particular problem himself. Warnas was evil, but he also wasn't a liar. However he had just raised the Senshi and if *they* got the idea that Warnas was a Menace...  
  
"Then I will try to come up with an amusing way to send them back to you, but I will not tolerate being threatened in my home. Likewise any other intruders that I deem yours but you lack control over." Warnas made a distasteful expression as if he could barely tolerate lowering himself this long to be able to hold a conversation.  
  
"Very well. i agree with these terms," began Greylle. Then blinked as he was suddenly on the roof at Furinkan. Actually he wasn't sure he could have negotiated anything and had it come out any better.  
  
The school bell rang below him.  
  
------  
  
Sailor Pluto frowned and checked the timeline. Crystal Tokyo was not there. Chibiusa, her "Small Lady" did not exist in this new timeline.   
  
Going back in time and killing the dragon was the obvious move, but Sailor Pluto was only protected against certain paradoxes. One that she could NOT ignore was that of "doubling back" in time. She had been in stasis for over a year, but that *still* counted.   
  
Before that year had started, there was no trace on earth of this alien. Every alteration he'd caused had begun within that time. Sailor Pluto could not go back and strike at the root.  
  
Which had caused the Senshi Of Time to go looking at the problem in more detail than she otherwise would have. What had this dragon done that had destroyed her future?  
  
Absolutely nothing, apparently. There was the scene where the Outer Senshi ambushed the dragon, killed him, and the ginzuishou vanished from Sailor Uranus' bloody hand just as she was holding it triumphantly aloft.  
  
Then Nemesis had come along and the Sailor Senshi had been slaughtered, their heads on pikes outside a large tower serving as decorations. Except for Sailor Moon who had been demoted from Queen to Concubine.  
  
Frowning, Sailor Pluto made a note NOT to ambush the dragon until later. Then viewed the timestream again.  
  
They got through the Nemesian battles with assistance from these Chinese Amazons, the dragon, and the dragon's minions. Sailor Moon was getting along more and more with Sailor Saturn. THEN the Outers ambushed the non-Senshi, killing Saturn along with the meddlers. Sailor Moon was quite unhappy with this, but would eventually come to forgive the Outers.  
  
And as the ginzuishou had vanished AGAIN, they fell to Galaxia. Once again everyone died and still no Crystal Tokyo.  
  
Rubbing her forehead and knowing darn well that this sort of act was severely frowned on if not actually taboo, Sailor Pluto tried again. Set up the ambush AFTER Galaxia and...  
  
Sailor Pluto winced as she saw her head being removed by a very large pair of jaws and Sailor Uranus getting this curved sword taken away from her and rammed up a sensitive part of her anatomy. Sailor Neptune didn't last very long after that.  
  
It was very difficult to do this, so the red-eyed Senshi decided to stop after one more attempt at foresight. What would happen if they *didn't* kill the damn dragon?  
  
Sailor Pluto, guardian of the Gates Of Time, stared in gape mouthed astonishment at the brief image. At which point she realized that Uranus and Neptune were likely plotting an attack right now!  
  
--------  
  
Greylle liked lunchtime. A chance to unwrap from cramped desk. A chance to rest his eyes from trying to decipher kanji all morning. (He had finally stopped confusing most of the hiragana and katakana.) The smell of ramen and okonomiyaki cooking, the chance to relax under a tree and breathe fresh air, to rest his mind from the deluge of useless information.  
  
"Shard Greylle! I challenge you!"  
  
Greylle sipped his box tea (bleah), not bothering to look up.   
  
Ranma stood there for a good twenty seconds. He opened his mouth to repeat his challenge when the blonde boy said, "So?"  
  
'So'? What did he mean by 'so'?! "Maybe I didn't make myself clear; I'm challenging you to a fight!"  
  
Greylle took a long, slow gulp from his drink. "Why fight?"  
  
Ranma's mouth dropped and hung there until he had to shoo away a bird that was considering his jaw a nesting site. "To show who's the better man, of course!"  
  
Greylle ignored the growing crowd around them as he ate more of his lunch. "No need show. Do you?"  
  
Ranma felt every eye around land upon him as his own twitched. This wasn't how challenges were supposed to go! The stares that he was getting and the quiet mutterings he was hearing started to chafe. And that girl had that weapon of hers showing again. Maybe a different approach. "I hear you're pretty good in your Art."  
  
"I guess so," said Greylle. Yeah, he was probably the most powerful cleric or White Mage in Furinkan at least. Heck, he might be the best in Japan!  
  
"Well, I'm the best there is," said Ranma, using his most practiced "piss the heck out of your opponent" smirk.  
  
"If you say so," Greylle said. In martial arts? No contest. Ranma was LOTS better than him. Heck, if it came to real martial arts without tricks or anything, AKANE was better than him.  
  
Gotcha. "So you think you're better, huh? Well, why don't you prove it? Or you a coward?"  
  
"No need. You better marital artist is," said Greylle agreeably.  
  
"Wow! A fight of Martial Arts Humility!" Yuka looked to Sayuri.   
  
Sayuri made an unfeminine noise of disagreement. "Yeah right. Ranma's the better man. Shard-san is the better dragon. Those two? It's worse than comparing apples and oranges."  
  
"What you want really, Ranma? This silly argument," Greylle asked of the ponytailed boy.  
  
"Uhm, can you remove the c-c-c-c- furry thing from my curse?"  
  
"Think so," agreed Greylle. "Should have just said. Try after school."  
  
--------  
  
A little black pig sulked. "Buqiiiii!"  
  
"Well, that's true, Saotome. You have to admit you *did* bring it on yourself."  
  
"Buqiii! Oink!"  
  
"Saotome, we've been friends many years, but I'll thank you not to use that sort of language in my house."  
  
Genma squeaked and continued sulking. At least when he was in pig form he could move. Otherwise the pain was too much. Fortunately he could avoid hot water.  
  
Soun tripped over apparently nothing and dropped his tea. "oops."  
  
"AAAAAAAAAAAGGHHHH!!"  
  
--------  
  
Hotaru's shrine area was fairly crowded after school.   
  
Akane had started to pull the rope that got the bells jangling but as soon as she had, feline playfulness had surfaced and now she was batting the rope around like a kitty toy. On one level she was amazed how much fun little things like a crinkly piece of paper could be. Or earlier when Greylle-sam... Shard-san had absently scratched her behind the ear and she'd started *purring*?! Not that it really mattered or anything. Oooooo! Birdies!  
  
Nabiki had floated to the top of one of the red archways or torii in order to work on a nasty little homework assignment but still be able to watch things progress. Information was useful after all. As to the sight of Akane giggling and chasing birds, well, Nabiki just shrugged and noted that Akane was enjoying herself and to cut down on the catnip in the future.  
  
Yuka had practically dragged Sayuri down here, and was now waiting for the whole thing to be over so that she could talk to Hotaru about maybe doing a study session.  
  
Sayuri was in front of the shrine praying that things would return to normal soon.  
  
Ranma was looking nervous as chalk lines were drawn around him in various odd patterns.  
  
Greylle was concentrating solely on the circles of protection and invocations that had to be prepared. A Jusenkyo curse was *not* an easy thing to lift. In game mechanics, he was age category five (young adult) as a silver dragon so his effective power level for a spell was 19! Admittedly his clerical level wasn't as high, but he had the raw power due to dragons being naturally attuned to the forces of magic. Still, curses could be tricky and finesse was required with any but the most crudely applied of them.  
  
Hotaru was trying to memorize all this stuff. It could come in handy someday!  
  
Three of the Rei units were looking around, unobtrusively standing guard. Well, at least as unobtrusive as three albino Japanese girls carrying laser carbines could be.  
  
--------  
  
Miles away, another sort of preparation was taking place.  
  
"It's okay, Ami-chan, you're needed here," Rei assured the quiet girl.  
  
"But I snuck out of the apartment," whined Ami.  
  
"Just because your mother grounded you is no reason for you not to defend the world," said Haruka, waving off the concern. "This is a higher duty."  
  
Michiru frowned as she regarded the manor. "Are you *sure* about this, Haruka? The smell of the sea is strong here, but we just came out of a battle."  
  
"They won't be expecting us, surprise is our biggest ally," Haruka said with false confidence. She hoped nobody else realized how much fertilizer she was spreading.   
  
"That's right," Makoto said, fist striking palm, "this is our first chance to strike *first* and on our own terms and conditions!"  
  
Setsuna had already transformed to Sailor Pluto. Other than the sense of some vague lurking evil, she hadn't seen anything indicative of a threat from this house. However there *was* a time distortion, one so subtle that she hadn't seen it until she had looked for it. Therefore her powers were needed to breach the barrier.  
  
"Mamo-chan," said Sailor Moon, looking up at her future husband.  
  
"This time I'll be with you from the start," promised Mamoru Chiba.  
  
Minako pumped a fist. "All right, we'll finally catch an enemy with our skirts down!"  
  
Group groan.  
  
"That's catch *them* with *their* pants down," corrected Artemis with a wince. He had a bad feeling about this.  
  
Luna looked around. "Okay everyone. Transform! We're going in!"  
  
---------  
  
Ranma-chan felt for ears and then a tail, then frowned. "Hey! How come I'm still a catgirl?!"  
  
"Jusenkyo curse fight me," said Greylle. "Try other tack. You now Catfist control. Just think cat-like."  
  
Ranma-chan considered that for a few moments, wondering if she should just be satisfied for the moment. The guy looked like he was about ready to keel over and if it was that tricky then maybe it would be a BAD thing to push it.  
  
"Sorry, but not have power after this morning." Greylle shrugged and fought a yawn. He lost. "Next week maybe again try."  
  
"Oh," Ranma said wondering what she'd missed.   
  
Cologne watched this interesting boy. He had limits. Limits were good. Flipping up a little piece of wood, the Chinese Matriarch considered what exactly she could do about the fellow. She'd already sent a message back to the village. Sugar and Spice, Salt and Pepper, Vanilla and Mint. Once they were here she could find out who the best match was. Maybe she should have contacted the twins Lotion and Potion. No, Potion was entirely too fond of explosives. Still, who else could Potion find who could *survive* some of her tantrums?  
  
Akane had found a place where there was warm wood to stretch out in, and a sunbeam that was downright toasty. She purred in a drowse.   
  
"So, Greylle-san, what do you think about what happened with Kasumi?" Yuka asked.  
  
"What happened to Kasumi?" Greylle asked.  
  
--------  
  
Kasumi twitched her tail as she stalked forward, the beautiful and dangerous catgirl whose superhuman levels of elegance and poise left mortal men in quiet admiration. Yes, the brownfurred Kasumi who was as at home in a simple Japanese kitchen as she was leaping through the jungles of deepest darkest Africa or along the skyline of Paris.   
  
There was Doctor Tofu, handsome in his tuxedo, gaping at her as she hinted ever so slightly that she might consent to his company as she prowled the night. IF he was lucky and could avoid acting quite so silly. She craved mature and dignified, and running around town giggling was not what she had in mind. No? Well to heck with him then!  
  
Kasumi strode forward, ignoring the envious looks of the women and the other looks directed at her by the men. She was too much for THEM to handle anyway. She knew that she was most comfortable in a domestic role, but tonight she was on the prowl. Tonight she was going dancing, and she was going to enjoy...  
  
Soun Tendo appeared in front of her, crying piteously. "No, Kasumi! You have to take care of me and my lifelong friend - the wastrel I brought in off the streets."  
  
Finding herself back to human, with chains holding her to the house, Kasumi looked around. Where were the crowds? Where was the dance floor? What was that huge pig doing in the house? Why did that mirror show her with gray hair and wrinkles?  
  
-------  
  
Kasumi gasped as she woke up. She looked down at herself, now wearing the familiar old housedress and blouse combination that she'd always worn. Good old responsible Kasumi. Human Kasumi. A Kasumi who couldn't defend herself or find someone to defend her.  
  
No wonder Shard-san wasn't interested. She was *plain* and useless. Not exotically cute like Akane's tigerform. Not clever and useful like Nabiki's cyborg self.  
  
"Fess-san?" Kasumi asked the wall.  
  
"Yes, Miss Tendo?" Fess responded instantly.  
  
"How difficult would it be for me... That is..." Kasumi labored over a way to put this that wouldn't seem too forward or too strange.  
  
Fess waited patiently while directing other projects elsewhere in the complex.  
  
"Fess-san, Akane is a tigress, and Nabiki has many talents..."  
  
"Just a moment, Miss Tendo. I'm directing another magical artifact to the collection."  
  
Kasumi blinked. "Magic?"   
  
"Yes, Miss Tendo," said Fess. "As we currently have little in the way of magical knowledge for our database, we have constructed a vault of magical items to be researched and their potentials for use recorded."  
  
"Oh," said Kasumi, coming to a decision. "Fess-san. I need to run a little errand and check something. I'll be back in a few hours."   
  
"Very well, Miss Tendo. Please use the elevator under the stairwell as repairs to other accessways have not been completed."  
  
Kasumi nodded and checked her makeup and clothing. She was going to have to go see Doctor Tofu, and if he wasn't willing to have a serious conversation with her, she'd have to explore her other options.  
  
--------  
  
Going into his apartment had revealed that the Sailor Senshi had indeed gone off half-cocked and attacking someone they should *not* have. At least this short guy with blue-black hair had a box out marked "Universal Translator." "Let me guess, you attacked that mansion even after you were warned not to, right?"  
  
The blond linebacker (he was wearing a football uniform) scowled. At his side a slender man in a tuxedo winced.  
  
"Further guess," supplied Greylle. "He changed your base equation so that you're male and now you can't transform into Sailor Senshi by those makeup transformations. With the exception of Miss Chiba over there."  
  
"Can it, we're having a bad day," growled Haruka. "Can you fix this or not?"  
  
"If i go and ask very politely, he *might* replace this with another transformation. Break the enchantment myself? Only if i were in dragonform and had a couple of days to prepare. If i tried like this it would most likely fail." Greylle shook his head. Actually, all of them looked fairly tough and muscular. Ami (judging by the blue tint, glasses, and height) was still fairly short but had something like a gymnast's build. "Considering that it *is* Warnas, you'd have to consider what he'd do. Most likely he'd turn you to children or animals or toys."  
  
"So you're a cowardly dragon?" Haruka started forward only to be restrained by Michiru.  
  
"Guys tend to be more aggressive, so you ought to watch out for that," Greylle advised Haruka.  
  
"You know of this villain, then?" Setsuna (a tall man wearing a purple turtleneck and slacks) asked wearily. She was obviously not enjoying this.  
  
"Never met him prior to this, heard of him by reputation," Greylle said, leaving the door open. It was standing room only in here and any air circulation he could get was needed. "Warnas is of the Aramarian pantheon - Elder gods that are hundreds of billions of years old in some cases, each of whom has spawned copies or reflections of themselves in other pantheons and timelines. Each embodies a universal concept that is part of reality. Warnas Redsword is the god of slavery and conquerers, the desire for absolute control over one's environment including others within that environment. He's a god of order: embodying the need for laws, castes, and the old 'might makes right' or 'survival of the strongest' concept. To some extent he's the god of evolution. During the Aramarian godswar he was deposed by a challenger, another Being by the name of Ankoku the Usurper. He lost a lot of power. Right now he only extends the barest threads of himself outside a one mile radius. IN that radius however - he can break the laws of physics, overpower the ginzuishou, or rewrite reality however he desires."  
  
The transformed Senshi looked even more upset.  
  
"How can we beat someone with THAT much power?" Usagi asked. He made a fairly tall guy with his hair back in a single ponytail.  
  
"You don't. If you don't enter that single mile, he won't do anything to you," said Greylle. "He's got a heck of a limitation there. It's sort of like being in a penalty box - he has to wait his turn to get back into the game, and if you don't bother him he won't bother you."  
  
"So let's go, *anything* is better than being a guy!" This from a really tall guy with brown hair.  
  
"i disagree with that, and i'm *really* tired. It would be best to wait until tomorrow."  
  
"NO WAY!" "I can't let anyone see me like THIS!" "There's got to be a better way."   
  
"Please," pleaded Setsuna. He looked about ready to cry.  
  
"That would probably work *if* you were a girl right now," pointed out Greylle. "No. i'm too tired to negotiate anything. It just wouldn't work. No. Absolutely not!"  
  
--------  
  
Kasumi was quickly losing patience.  
  
"Hahahaha! See, Betty, Kasumi came to see you! Would you like some tea Kasumi?"  
  
That he was dancing around the office and had just mistaken an anatomy chart for her did not sit particularly well with Kasumi. "Doctor Tofu. We need to speak. Father engaged me to Shard-san but I'm not sure that I could handle someone both younger and an alien."  
  
"Wow, Kasumi, you look tired. Why don't you take a seat?"  
  
A frown began to trace itself on Kasumi's face. Now Doctor Tofu had apparently decided that she was Betty. "Doctor?"  
  
"So... you've decided to not be engaged? How nice!" Doctor Tofu leaned against a curtain to straighten himself. He fell over immediately.  
  
Kasumi let out a deep breath. This sort of thing usually happened whenever she was alone with Tofu Ono. She crossed to the chiropractor, grabbed him and tried to shake him, to get to him to listen to her.  
  
At Kasumi's touch, Tofu Ono momentarily calmed. He looked down, seeing the delicate makeup job enhancing her beauty subtly, the fragrance of her perfume dizzying.   
  
Seeing him at last gain some resemblence of sensibility, Kasumi calmed herself. Maybe she could reasonably discuss this with him after all.  
  
--------  
  
"i told you to let *me* do all the talking."  
  
"You didn't seem to be doing all that well before I stepped in," protested Haruka.  
  
The short blonde woman stopped and glared at Haruka. "Yeah. NOW LOOK!"   
  
"Well, at least you're cute..." Ami's eyes got wide as what he had just said and how he felt about it penetrated. "Oh no."  
  
Greylle looked up at him. How odd, this was the first time she'd been around Ami and Ami had been the taller of the two. "Thank you for noticing, Ami-chan, but i'd rather not explore my femininity at this time."  
  
"Like you've got a choice?" Setsuna gave a shrug as he looked over the short and curvy blonde. "That outfit looks good on you."  
  
"i have *never* wanted to wear a Sailor Senshi seifuku, by the way. Nor will i particularly get the hang of walking in these shoes very easily." Greylle fumed slightly.   
  
Haruka saw the chance at another dig. "Hey, little girl, you wanna come home with me?"  
  
"You keep that up, Haruka, and i will show you a 'World Shaking' from the other end. 'The world needs the Sailor Senshi to defend it.' Urrrrrrr." Sailor Solar System glared at the tall boy.  
  
"All the more reason for you to find a way to break the enchantment," said Haruka before Michiru could stop him.  
  
Two fingers came up. "Crescent B..."  
  
Makoto smiled sheepishly at the much shorter and very curvaceous girl she'd grabbed. "Uhm, much as he deserves it right now, please don't..." Makoto's eyes widened comically.  
  
Minako had also dived for the new Senshi and was also staring.   
  
"Uhm," Ami wanted to put this delicately. "Makoto, you might want to keep that hand over her mouth just so that she doesn't do anything rash, but the hand on her breast *might* be a bit much. Minako-kun, I'm sure you didn't mean to grab her there, but judging from the way she's trying to kick you, you might want to get that hand away from her crotch."  
  
"AAAAGHHH!" Makoto and Minako shot away as if they had been burned.  
  
"Get a room!" Someone yelled from a window nearby.  
  
(Twitch twitch) "You.... hentai..." (twitch twitch) Sailor Solar System picked herself off of the pavement.  
  
"Maybe we should sleep at Mamoru's apartment tonight," suggested Usagi, grabbing his shorter lover under one arm and running before checking to see if anyone was paying attention.  
  
Breathing hard and trembling, her nails digging into her palms, the 5'0" (5'4" in her current shoes) Senshi tried to restrain herself from trying out some really nifty high power attacks on the remaining guys. "You had better *not* have intended that."  
  
Once again Haruka proved that she suffered from Saotome Mouth Syndrome when male. "Oh come on. They're not going to try anything with a little tramp like you, unless you keep leading them on."  
  
Dead silence. Everyone else but Haruka and the new Senshi started looking for cover to hide behind.   
  
Suddenly Greylle smiled, showing dimples. "You know, Tenou-kun, I have just one thing to say to you."  
  
Haruka smirked. "You know you love it."  
  
"Go soak your head. DEEP SUBMERGE!"  
  
Michiru shook his head and went to go collect the unconscious Haruka-kun. "Now THAT he had coming."  
  
  
=========  
  
__Oh no! Gender reversed Senshi?  
(i've read one of these - but they only reversed Usagi's gender, not *everyone's*).  
__Greylle is Sailor System?  
__What of the effect on Crystal Tokyo?  
__Will Mamoru be the one who gives birth to Chibiusa?  
__Haruka has Ranma's foot in mouth disease as a guy? (It *is* fairly common of male anime characters, after all.)  
__What of Hotaru and Fess?  
__Will the evil villains make their appearance? 


	14. Chapter 14: complete?

===========  
  
Retake 14  
"Batting Practice" (partial)  
  
DISCLAIMER: Some of these character originated with someone else. The Grimlok Institute based more or less on a very strange and hentai webpage i ran across.  
  
-----  
  
Haruka frowned down at his beer. "Okay, it's been a week. How do we handle this?"  
  
"Haruka-kun, if we go, and it looks likely, the rest of us have decided to tie you up and gag you for the duration of our visit," Mikiro Kaioh said without a trace of humor.  
  
"Ha ha, knock it off with the jokes, Kaioh, you're no good at it." Haruka glared at his former lover. With both of them guys the relationship had passed the point where "strained" could be said to be applicable.  
  
"He wasn't joking," said the rest of the guys at the table.  
  
Andy, formerly known as Ami, cleared his throat. "I've done some checking since we last met. Greylle said that our 'base equations' were altered. All records check out from our birth certificates on - that we were born male and Mamoko Chiba was born a girl."  
  
Shinji shrugged and looked uncomfortable. "Fits with what I've learned from talking to friends. I'm still me, and I remember being Usagi Tsukino, but everyone remembers Shinji. I think Naru had a crush on me a few years ago until she and Umino got together from what they were saying. This is *so* weird."  
  
"What about Mamoko?" Andy asked.  
  
"She and Sakura are out shopping," Shinji responded, looking slightly depressed.  
  
"Has anyone noticed that neither Mamoru nor Greylle remember anything about their other lives unless you are actively trying to remind them?" Andy frowned. "They are usually completely into their new roles as Mamoko and Sakura."  
  
"Oh boy, *have* I!" Shinji Tsukino rolled his eyes. "Mamo-chan acts *so* feminine. She's a good cook, she likes to go dancing, it's so weird."  
  
"They're Japanese girls, and therefore they tend to try and fit in more than they would as guys," suggested Rei, idly cracking his knuckles. "Sometimes it's easier for us to just go with the flow too."  
  
Andy shook his head. "It's just so... Sakura-chan asked if I'd been eating well lately and she came by my apartment and fixed me dinner!"  
  
Makoto sighed. "Me too. AND she cleaned my apartment. I didn't even realize I had been making a mess until she started in on it."  
  
Sebastian Meiou shook his head. "So you two are the 'other men' here, I should have guessed."  
  
"You guys too?" Manny, once known as Minako, blinked. "She's playing all of us?"  
  
"Sakura isn't *trying* to flirt, I don't think," said Andy. "She's just the kind of girl that wants to be nice to everyone and take care of them..."  
  
"Don't forget that 'she' is a 'he' and we are the real girls here," said Haruka. "She doesn't try any of that crap with me anymore."  
  
Mikiro frowned but didn't say anything for a moment. He briefly considered bringing up what Haruka *had* tried to do when cornering the relatively small girl. No, the fight would likely break out immediately and Haruka wasn't up to fighting everyone. Maybe later. "Has anyone else had any odd sensations or urges?"  
  
"Judging from the set of blushes, I'd say it was nearly unanimous," said Andy. "It's normal from the literature that guys tend to be a bit more..."  
  
"Hormonally addled," supplied Haruka. "On the other hand, I was apparently never excluded from racing for being a boy. I've got even more trophies and awards than I did before."  
  
"I know it's normal for guys, but the urges and needs are so odd," Andy confessed hesitantly. "Apparently guys feel the need to protect women. Not to mention we now seem a little more emotionally controlled, but when we do get our emotions involved it's all so different. If we care about some girl at all it's like..."  
  
"We want to hold on to her and kiss her all over and crush her to us as we..." Makoto's voice trailed off as he went off into lemon territory.   
  
A group sigh was followed by group embarassment.  
  
"Sex is *so* much different," said Shinji into the silence. Then turned red as he realized the cat had just escaped the bag. Not that Luna or Artemis had been seen much lately since they were now both human and of different genders.  
  
"You... and Mamoko?!" Andy asked, blushing fiercely as this subject suddenly came crashing in on them.  
  
Hesitatingly, Shinji nodded. "At her place. Even her apartment is completely different from what it was last week. She was so into the role and well, one thing led to another, and..."  
  
"Rabbits: lucky and sexfiends," said Haruka with a grin.  
  
Sebastian looked over the group. "Okay, we've decided we'll get to that manor and try to ask *politely* that we get changed back. It's either that or decide which of us is going to end up Sakura's boyfriend."  
  
"Well, she's, I mean," Makoto began to look nervous, "you know I think I could get her pretty easily out of all of us."  
  
"I disagree, she appreciates my maturity and intellect," argued Andy.  
  
"No, no, no, *I* am the one Sakura should end up with," Manny said.  
  
"Pfeh, *girls* - they're just plain trouble," said Rei.   
  
"She's got the combined powers of the Sailor Senshi," said Haruka drily. "I'd say the choice would end up in *her* hands. Oh heck. Now you've got *me* doing it!"  
  
"It's a challenge then," said Manny with male competitiveness showing. "We'll see which of us can win her."  
  
"She's pretty, a good cook, she'd make a great wife, but are any of us really ready for that sort of thing? We're just fourteen years old! She's sixteen. Even in Japan, we're not old enough for marriage," Andy argued.  
  
"She is. You can get married at sixteen, and *I* am twenty," said Sebastian. "If it came to a contest, I'm pretty sure I could sweep her off her feet fairly quickly."  
  
Haruka had always been competitive, and now she had a chronic case of Ranma foot-in-mouth disease and was even more competitive and aggressive. "You? Don't make me laugh. I'm pretty sure I could get into her panties before any of you. Heck, having some cute little girl around to cook and clean for me could be quite amusing."  
  
Glares were directed at Haruka who merely snorted.  
  
"Fine," said Andy, knowing that now he had to win. The sweet little girl he now knew as Sakura was triggering all sorts of protective and possessive instincts. He *had* to protect her from ending up with someone like Haruka! "There's no way you'll win!"  
  
"Bets?" Haruka grinned confidently. When he turned on the charm there wasn't a girl he couldn't have.   
  
"You're on!" Andy declared. Makoto, Sebastian, Rei (surprising himself), Mikiro, Haruka, and Manny all nodded.  
  
Shinji just stared. "You *do* all realize that you just declared you were going to make Sakura your girlfriend."   
  
Everyone stared at each other.  
  
"We have *got* to change back," said Mikiro with considerable feeling.  
  
-------  
  
Hotaru looked sadly at the girl chatting excitedly with the others. She, Fess, and those marionette girls appeared to be the only ones who remembered. It was nice that her sempai was happy and making friends easily. It was not so nice that his name was Sakura now, that he was a girl and remembered always having been one, or that instead of being his fiancee she was now just a buddy. Not that Hotaru wasn't more than pleased with gaining some new friends, but she'd gotten used to the idea of having a fiance.  
  
"He did? No, really?" Sakura exclaimed.  
  
"Cross my heart!" Mamoko declared.  
  
"Get out of here!" Nabiki wasn't buying it.  
  
"Did you pound him?" Akane asked.  
  
No, this was *not* really acceptable to Hotaru Tomoe.   
  
"So, what did you do?" queried Yuka.  
  
Mamoko Chiba decided to deflect some of the attention. Getting a sly look she chose a subject she knew would do the trick. "So, Sakura-chan, which one do *you* like?"   
  
Sakura shook her head. "Hey, they're just friends. It's not like any of 'em could handle being *my* boyfriend."  
  
"I don't know about that," said Nabiki, the opportunity for teasing too much to pass up. "Andy Mizuno's going to be a doctor. I could see myself as the wife of a doctor."  
  
Sakura smiled sweetly back. "Then make your move, girl. Though you better leave him *some* money if you want him to make it to 'Doctor status' someday."  
  
"Or maybe Makoto," suggested Nabiki. "He's so tall and with those broad shoulders of his."  
  
"Go for it," said Sakura. "I don't..."  
  
Everyone looked curiously as Sakura abruptly stood up and looked off to the side. Sakura's puzzled look gave way to such an expression of glee that everyone started looking to see if it was a cute boy.  
  
"'By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes,'" quoted Sakura.   
  
"rrrrrRRRRAGGGHHHHH!"  
  
Everyone jumped up at that noise, though some had different reactions.   
  
"Listen, I got to go do something, be right back," said Sakura, popping her knuckles in a thoroughly unfeminine gesture.   
  
"Why is it that whenever there's a youma attack," said Nabiki, remembering things from the rewritten history, "you always remember something... you've got to do." Nabiki's voice trailed off as things abruptly went CLICK and fit together.  
  
Sakura shrugged and prepared to go running off. Akane stopped her by grabbing the flap at the back of Sakura's seifuku. "Spill it, Nabiki."  
  
"Sailor Senshi..." Nabiki stared at her friend of the past two years. It all made sense. Sakura was *always* running off whenever youma or daimon or cardian attacked. That meant...  
  
"Well, I'm sorry Nabiki, but non Senshi can't be allowed to know," Sakura said, freeing herself from Akane's grip and facing the girl. Keeping secrets from her friends hadn't ever sat well with her. "Therefore..."  
  
"Wait, I can help!" Nabiki tried. Well, yes, she *did* want to follow Sakura around with a camera and get pictures of her fighting youma as Sailor System, but this was her best friend - and Nabiki didn't have so many friends that she'd willingly sacrifice one.  
  
"Good," Sakura said, then touched her chest where that odd bandage was that they'd all seen when she was changing clothes. A light began shining from under that bandage. "Solar System Power, Make UP!"  
  
Mamoko shrugged and stood up next to a gaping Kasumi. "Earth Power, Make UP!"  
  
Hotaru sighed at the inevitable. She hoped Greylle/Sakura knew what she was doing. "Saturn Power, Make up..."  
  
Nabiki, Kasumi, Akane, Yuka, Sayuri, and Ranma (who had just been checking to see what was going on) gaped as three nifty keen lightshows erupted and when they were done left three Sailor Senshi standing there.  
  
"Mine is the planet of life and birth. Standing proudly, Sailor Earth," said the forest green wearing Sailor.  
  
"Mine is the planet of silence. Standing ready, Sailor Saturn." Saturn thunked her Silence Glaive into a rest position.  
  
"rrrrrRRRRAGGGHHHHH!" This sounded a lot closer.  
  
"Combining the powers of Mercury, Venus, the Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, or at least the bulk of them. Sailor Solar System! Standing ready to kick some behind!"  
  
Nabiki wet her lips. She knew Sakura could be a bit enthusiastic and had a strong sense of personal honor. "Uhm. About no non-Senshi being allowed to know?"  
  
Making a couple of passes in the air, Sailor Solar System then leapt up and flipped in midair over the koi pond. "Solar System Power: Lesser Senshi Recruitment!" As she came back down she kicked something out of the air that slapped lightly into Nabiki's chest.  
  
Nabiki held up the odd brooch, then pulled out a jeweler's loupe to examine it. "Hmmm. Nice manufacture. This a bribe?"  
  
"Try saying 'Charon Moon Power, Make up'," suggested Sailor Solar System before leaping into the air again and kicking something towards Kasumi.  
  
"'Charon Moon Power, Make upppppppppppppppppp!'" Nabiki said, spinning around as she had makeup applied, felt something grow, and finally landed on her feet. "Damn, that felt... GOOD."  
  
Kasumi looked at her own brooch. Akane, Yuka, and Sayuri got pens. "Triton" "Callisto" "Io" "Minerva" "Europa" "Make Up?!" Four light shows commenced.  
  
"Ahhhhh! Why have I got a tail?! And FUR?!" Akane looked down at herself.   
  
"Hmmm. Never saw that before. Must be why these were never used," absently said Sailor System. "Oh well. So Nabiki is a dark elven looking girl, Akane is a tigergirl, Kasumi is an elf, Yuka is a robotgirl, and Sayuri turned green and has gills. Oh well, at least you can run crowd control while I beat on the bad guy. Let's GO!"  
  
"AAAAA! I don't wanna!" Sayuri protested as Sailor System formed a gravity bubble and flew off with them.  
  
"...stupid girls..." Ranma muttered briefly. Going off to a fight and leaving him. Though he knew if he let them know he'd been listening to them, he'd get pounded. Why couldn't HE get a powerup too, though he didn't need any cheats. Not HIM. Nope. "Aw, who am I trying to kid?"  
  
Keeping an eye on the flying group, Ranma sped off in pursuit. He needed to be there in case there really was a good fight, yeah, that'd work.  
  
-------  
  
Doctor Mercury, Tuxedo Moon, Racer Uranus, and the various others arrived to a fight. That isn't what they saw.   
  
"SILKY!" The spider-girl declared. She was big, at least 9' tall, she was strong enough to rip trees out of the ground with the proportionate strength and speed of a spider, she went around and wrapped people in webbing while looting cash registers and stowing them in a pack on her back. All of which was obvious from the number of people tied up in coccoons and the tree being waved at someone.  
  
Something else was apparent. Silky was really really scared. "I'm just a monster trying to make my Master a dishonest living, I haven't hurt anyone! What did I do to deserve Sailor System?!"  
  
The girl sitting in midair smirked down at her. "Why do you think you're still alive?"  
  
"Aaaaaa!" The spider-girl threw the tree and started running.  
  
"You ever feel completely superfluous?" Sailor Callisto asked Sailor Earth.  
  
"All the time, actually," admitted Earth.  
  
"So I'll just beat you up a *little*!" Sailor System declared, flying overhead with an evil grin.  
  
"Nooooooooooo!" The spider-girl started literally climbing walls to get out of the way. "I saw what you did to Chimera!"  
  
Doctor Mercury looked around and noticed a small crater with splatmarks. Okay...  
  
Spider-girl turned and began throwing webbing behind her in an attempt to throw off pursuit.  
  
"Running away? You could hurt a poor defenseless girl's feelings like that." Sailor System conjured a harp of water. "Aqua... Rhapsody!"   
  
"'Helpless'?" Sailor Charon repeated. She wasn't the only one.  
  
"I surrender! I surrender! Just call her off! Aaaaa!" The Spider-girl was concealed in ice.  
  
"You killed her?" Sailor Callisto looked a little queasy. Especially after what had happened to 'Chimera'.  
  
"Nah, she might be a monster but all she did was severely inconvenience people," Sailor System said as she landed. "I just formed an ice sphere around her. It should last until she's taken into custody."  
  
"Makes me long for the good old days," grumbled Gymsuit Jupiter. "Monsters come around and try to steal people's energy, then we dust 'em. Look at that! That one was looting a Kwik-E-Mart! They didn't try to surrender, they were evil and we crushed 'em."  
  
"They just don't make youma like they used to," said Bishonen Venus, patting the bigger Jupiter on the back. "I remember the days well, fighting to defeat menaces to the human race, not some chain store's profits."  
  
"Yeah, yeah," agreed Jupiter.  
  
"Oh look, it's the Tuxteam batting cleanup again!" Sailor System flew up to their rooftop. "Hey, I'm about due for a vacation, I figured Hawaii is pretty cool. So you can watch the new Senshi while they get their combat experience in and practice and all that stuff. I heard there was some tough fights, some sort of Street Fighter tournament, that sort of thing."  
  
"It figures SHE would think of that as relaxing," said Sailor Charon sarcastically. She knew her friend tended to be a bit too competitive.  
  
Sailor Callisto looked up. "You mean that worldwide fighting tournament between the toughest fighters? Can I come?"  
  
Ranma would have probably wanted to come along himself but after getting a good look at Akane's tigergirl form was currently heading towards Hokkaido.  
  
----------  
  
A darkened room with a number of computers working, a book on a central table, though what really would have alarmed certain superheroes was found against one wall.  
  
It was a lifesize poster blowup of a photograph of Sailor System flying. Short skirt and all.  
  
There was very little doubt that the real Sailor System would have objected loudly to the presence of the thing. Though her first protest would have been that it was blurry and definitely didn't capture her best side.  
  
Four of the typists, currently wearing leather collars and leashes, would have been immediately recognizable to anyone who had watched Sailor Moon S. Currently that would have been limited to a number of the Sailor Marionettes and Fess, but those would have immediately recognized Eudial, Mimette, Terurun, and Viluy. That these were originally members of the Witches 5 from the "Pure Heart" plotline, missing only Cyprine, would have been noted.   
  
What would not have been immediately known was that these four Witches weren't destroyed when Professor Tomoe's lab had been shattered. That some of the Eggs of Daimon had survived, and that their support base had *not* survived would also not have been known by Fess nor the marionettes.  
  
That in searching for a NEW support base that they would have accidently run across a self-styled coven of computer geeks playing at being evil. Naturally, on finding out they had money, the Witches 5 thought they could take over and show these play-villains what really being bad was all about.  
  
It didn't hurt that each of the Coven Of Chaos was really lacking in anything that might be labeled common sense and on seeing the Witches 5 they'd been reduced nearly to the level of hormonally addled babbling idiots. It still might not have amounted to anything except for one little additional factor.  
  
Which was a wizard named Heironomus (Harry) leaving a travelling spellbook where it could be found by a fellow named Hiroki Gosunkugi, who happened to have a few things in common with his cousin Hikaru. Hikaru was invited as well, but wasn't able to make it on a regular basis.  
  
It was with one of the recipes in the book of magic that Hiroki was able to turn the tables on the Witches 5. Which was why they currently thought there was absolutely nothing wrong with wearing leashes and dog collars as they typed out the various homework assignments for the fourteen year old boys in the Coven.   
  
So the evil boys of the Coven of Chaos, having five self-confessed evil witches under their thrall by means of something called "Thraxin's Spell Of Witch Binding" (which worked by getting the victim to confess she was a witch and then make some oath that would suddenly become binding on them, easily done because the five witches had no intention of living by any oath when they had sworn those oaths - it was just something to get their hands on that idiot's bank account) had started out with pretty much what you would expect.  
  
Their reign of evil started by having the witches do their homework, buy ecchi magazines for them, and similar things.   
  
They had recently graduated to trying to steal money, summon scantily clad nature sprites, create monsters (that bore an awful lot of resemblence to the girls in the ecchi magazines due to a lack of focus from various spellcasters) (these were used to attempt stealing money as well as try to get panty shots of Sailor System and Sailor Earth), and cheat on tests.  
  
Morgana, in Japan on the bequest of Harry, had noted the magic and cast a quick divination. On finding that the source came back as "Harry's spellbook" she promptly ignored it. If the lesser mage was still investigating the dragon, let him. She was looking forward to playing Merlin to this new Camelot, just the thought of the expressions on Arthur or Merlin's faces was enough to give the idea *enormous* appeal. If only the dragon would get this bit over with and get back to forming his new society. She even had an idea for an Excalibur substitute.  
  
As for the Witches 5? Well, their Masters *were* fourteen year old boys. They were still trying to get their nerve up to having their slaves do a strip tease. Especially after the last attempt had resulted in a near terminal nosebleed (Hiroki was nearly a hemophiliac) and a case of boys who had darn little idea of what to do with their hormones.  
  
Heck, the information relayed about a new crop of short skirted seifuku wearing defenders of love and justice had them ready to grab the Poloroids and summon up some really ridiculous monsters.  
  
That they would be described as "pathetic" or "lame" never entered the minds of any of the Coven, of course.  
  
---------  
  
The reaction of the formerly female Senshi, now male and reduced to throwing what all of them agreed were relatively lame attacks, to being told that a key part of their plan at restoring the old status quo was going to go on an extended vacation was what you might expect.  
  
Uranus growled and quite obviously wanted to punch something. He'd always thought of guys as something basically inferior and untrustworthy, just look at the ones that had held his racing talents against him when he was a she! Now he was going to be a guy for a longer time?! Uranus would prefer hitting that flitting little girl except for a couple of simple problems: a) she was hovering over a four story drop, and b) she'd kick his butt into next Tuesday. He didn't like the fact that as a guy every so often the most blatantly wrong things were jumping from her lips. He didn't like that guys tended to be coarser in their relationships, more straightforward and less refined. He didn't like the way that Racer Uranus, instead of throwing a "World Shaking", had a main attack that consisted of throwing carnations!  
  
Pluto shook his head. Crystal Tokyo currently consisted of King Serene and his wife Sailor Earth ruling while Sailor System held the ginzuishou and oversaw the Department Of Butt-Kicking (formally known as the Ministry Of Defense but System always referred to it as the former and the practice had spread). A quick retreat and glance showed that if this kept up, there would be practically a squadron of Lesser (Moon) Senshi while there was practically an army of Least (asteroid and other small body) Senshi. Not to mention the proliferation of Knights and giant robot warmachines. This had to be stopped! Even the barely glimpsed future with all the Camelot references was less out of control than their current one!  
  
Neptune was of two minds of this. The old feminine mindset still clinging on just wanted things to be back to normal and for Michiru and Haruka to be a couple again. Haruka's new mouth had caused some disagreements to step forward. The new male mindset was admiring Sailor System's legs and picturing various hentai things that could be explored with it. Starting with cherry syrup, which was why the Knight of Neptune was licking his lips as he stared.  
  
"Hey, that sounds good, can I come?" Doctor Mercury, in his labcoat shirt and tie, smiled at the floating girl. That he found her enormously attractive and wanted to get her alone on the beach for perhaps a romantic dinner, and then... ahem. Stimulating conversation of course. Though if they *could* turn back, would that mean that *everything* had to return to normal? Getting to know the android Ami over the past week had been quite educational. And the relationship with his mother was slightly different too. And the relationship with Sakura? How to get back to that?  
  
Venus sighed. He suffered from foot-in-mouth nearly as bad as Haruka (okay, it was worse) and never had a chance with a cute girl. Though if they could just get everyone changed back, that tall lean studly guy/dragon was going to find himself dragged off by Sailor Venus. One had to assure the duty to the Princess by keeping her safe and not alienating possible allies after all, and if Sailor Venus happened to get a boyfriend out of the deal...  
  
Jupiter tried to restrain impulses that his male libido and social upbringing tried to force him into. When he'd been a girl, she's been somewhat boy crazy. Now as a guy, he could have practically any girl he wanted. It was making Makoto a little nuts trying to hold onto his formerly feminine identity, and the one girl he *most* desired he had competition for. Though if he'd known why Neptune was still licking his lips, most likely a fight would have broken out.  
  
Tuxedo Moon (aka Shinji Tsukino, future Prince Serene) was looking down at where his poor delicate Mamoko was chatting happily with her new Senshi and apparently fairly content. Though he thought Sakura was cute, he knew full well how jealous Mamoko could get. Shinji shook his head, trying to remember that he was really *Usagi*. That he was not going to become Prince Serene, she was going to be Princess Serenity! If only she'd been able to get through to Uranus and Neptune that they needed to loosen up some!  
  
Priest Mars frowned. Instead of T*A School, he was attending the boy's version. One thing that had become immediately apparent was that everyday at lunch time there would be a fight over the food. Sakura was a nice girl, if awfully tomboyish at times, and... Mars slammed his palm into his forehead. BAD thoughts, bad bad thoughts.  
  
"I dunno, Mercury," Sailor System said uncertainly, "what about your school and classes and stuff?"  
  
Mercury sighed in disappointment. Of course he wouldn't be able to charm the popular Sakura. He... Mercury's eyebrows rose as Sailor System flitted in close.   
  
"Gee, you'd think you could straighten your tie a bit better than that." Sailor System said, straightening tie and collar. "There ya go, handsome as ever! See you later."  
  
Mercury blinked rapidly as Sailor System flew off. "Oh my."  
  
"Damn, you can move fast when you want to, can't you?" Jupiter rumbled, shaking his head.  
  
"Never would have seen it coming," remarked Uranus, mainly just to see Mercury twitch and blush.  
  
"It's those shy quiet guys you've got to look out for," opined Neptune.  
  
Jupiter kindly reached out and kept Mercury from wandering off the roof.  
  
-------  
  
They had been forgotten in the chaos.  
  
Built as experiments and prototypes, treated with affection and care, they had been left behind nonetheless. No way to go back and retrieve them, and no time to do it either.  
  
Except that Fess had found a "to do" list buried in a computer file and now knew of them.  
  
On the Sabre Marionette world of Terra Two (or Terratoo if you prefer), the word went out among the prototypes and developments of Ginseng.   
  
Their Master had need of them again.  
  
--------  
  
Morgana smirked as she regarded the mirror. "Can't interfere at all? That's a darn shame."  
  
Amaterasu looked back from her mirror interface. "Well, I certainly hadn't expected quite these repercussions from my little act earlier. Hotaru will do well as a shrine priestess, and if she manages to get a boyfriend out of this... so much the better."  
  
"Things are going to come to a head very soon," remarked Morgana. "This enchantment reversing a few genders will be unraveled soon, either by this 'Warnas' or by myself. Then I suspect we'll see that Uranus girl attempt to lead the others into attacking the dragon. Loyalties will be divided. She reminds me a lot of Lancelot."  
  
"I'm afraid I'm not familiar with all the variants of Camelot. Which version is this?" Amaterasu asked from her mirror.  
  
"Oh standard I suspect. Camelot was actually neither particularly grand or noble, but that's typical of legends and such. Everyone remembers the grand speeches and lofty goals, everyone forgets the filth and squallor and the little dirty deeds." Morgana looked off into the distance as if she could see the events transpiring. "Merlin means 'black hair' you know, and he was actually also known as Saint Patrick. Artur was a chief to a bunch of tribes. Most of the knights were pretty much what you'd expect from the fifth century AD, no gleaming plate armor - that's for certain. Lancelot was a bit of a wencher, it was said that the only lance he wielded better than the one from horseback was the one he wielded in the bedchamber. He was also Artur's chief political rival. He got together with Guinevere - who was a bit of a twit actually, and since Artur hadn't been that active lately due to some health problems, managed to seduce her into the idea of backing him when he took the throne."  
  
"Typical politics of the era," commented Amaterasu.  
  
"True," admitted Morgana. "Anyway, I was young back then. Not even a century old. Had a child of Artur's because of trickery from an old political party, lost track of the child due to some infighting among a group of mages that I'd gotten involved in, then tried to sponsor the child for the throne. Stupid of me, actually. There was something seriously wrong with Modred, rage disorder I think. He wouldn't have made a good ruler, even in those times."  
  
"So you view this as a way of making up for your prior lapse in judgement?"  
  
Morgana nearly laughed at that. "Oh come on, I've made up for it a dozen times over since then. I'm *old*. No matter what these Japanese say about evolving here seperate from all other races, I was born prior to some Chinese fishermen finding this island and going back to tell their families about it. I'm not nearly as old as the Ainu that they slaughtered when those Chinese got here and decided to settle, but I'm old enough. I've done my penance and made my peace on Camelot many years ago."  
  
"So what is this, then?" Amaterasu didn't want to hear this was a passing fancy from the sorceress.  
  
"Simple - a new Camelot more shining than before," said Morgana with a sly look. "One of Artur's problems was that he had few people that were actually on his side. Everyone had their own agendas and were rarely willing to work it out amongst themselves. One problem I foresee with this Crystal Tokyo is the *absence* of dissenting viewpoints."  
  
"Perhaps," said Amaterasu. "However, I hope that Hotaru as a shrine priestess can grow into the 'Merlin' role."  
  
"We'll see, I suppose," said Morgana with a smile and a puff of displaced air as she teleported away.  
  
---------  
  
Large machines trundled around the borehole, ignoring the conditions that would have killed an unprotected human within minutes. Even the typical marionette would have been rendered inoperative in a short period of time. The armored titans that moved about the borehole were rated for much more hazardous environs.  
  
This particular borehole was roughly as big around as a football field, and its depth was such that air heated from the depths of the planet formed a thermal plume overhead.  
  
Many of the machines used wheels of metal mesh or treads as opposed to the insectile legs common on many of those originating from Earth.   
  
At a signal, the borehole was deemed sufficiently complete, and the machines moved away to the next site.  
  
Long after the last of them had cleared the ridge a single non-AI robot went to a predetermined spot and began digging. Its front part chewed up ground and sped the debris backwards, rear "legs" further moving the stuff out of the way so that a small channel was formed.  
  
Upon reaching the depth indicated by its programming, the machine noted the substance ahead of it was of different material and had considerable pressure behind it. The little digger-bot folded its rear extensions as it had been programmed to, sealed its vents, and dug just a little further.  
  
The geyser of water swept the little bot out, and a timer went on. Eventually it would be reclaimed when the flood was over and it was merely buried in ice. For now, it would conserve battery power by entering a minimal existence as it was swept along by powerful currents.  
  
The waters themselves were nearly frozen even as they erupted, and at several points the channel was partially clogged by ice. Eventually it would freeze anyway but the force of the eruption would keep the ice from freezing completely.   
  
Water, no matter what planet it was on, always seeks the lowest point. Released from the pressure it had been under for a few billion years, it swept along and began the plunge when it found the borehole. The water was heated, then superheated, then released as steam at first, then pressure built and started forming short bursts of bubbles. Eventually the borehole filled anyway, with extremely warm water forming a well in the now frozen lake of Arcadia Planitia.  
  
----------  
  
Flying was fun. Sailor System didn't bother with the thought of people trying to peek at her panties under the short skirt. The seifuku was more like a swimsuit with a skirt, and she was confident enough in her looks not to feel too embarassed by people staring at her legs. That left her to enjoy the rush of flying without being too self-conscious about the whole thing.  
  
So she flew way overhead and ignored one of those annoying Grimlok(1) capture teams trying to catch her again. Buncha perverts anyway. Hopefully they wouldn't show up at the tournament. She had told the last batch that if they tried to catch her again, she frankly didn't care if they'd shielded themselves with civilians or if they thought of themselves as good guys, they'd be leaving in body bags or body casts at the very least. Same if they bothered Sailor Saturn or Earth.  
  
Of course that meant the bondage-fetishists would be after *her* as the primary target, but that was just as well. Sailor System was the most adaptable and powerful of the Senshi, though Saturn had more oomph in one of her attacks, it was the forbidden/taboo one. No, it was far better that their target be someone who could defend themselves.   
  
Concealing herself, Sailor System doubled back and looked at their preparations in more detail. Ah, an anti-magic field? They were going to try and cut off her magical powers then use tasers and martial artists to wear her down? Then use one of those weird capture things to make her a living statue? Didn't these guys ever come up with an original idea? Hmmmph. Tempting to just go in and Gravity Bubble them and then drop them from a half mile up.   
  
The trick with these loonytunes was to always have something new to spring on them. Hit them with something that they hadn't anticipated, and they'd fall apart - a result of the very hit teams they were composed of being brainwashed into their roles themselves. Not that these girls were capable of realizing it.  
  
Threat or not, Sailor System was not inclined to strike at innocent dupes. Unfortunately, she didn't have a Dispel Mind Control special attack. She could do *some* healing, but Tuxedo Moon and Sailor Earth were both better at it.   
  
Hiding behind a set of pipes on a nearby rooftop, Sailor System looked through her binoculars (5000yen, Matsuhiro Sporting Goods - just because they weren't Silver Millenium supplied didn't mean she shouldn't use 'em) and studied the setup. Another fake youma/damsel in distress thing? Something wrong with this picture, System decided. They usually had one new gadget at least, and the last time they'd crossed paths she had made that little threat. So how were they...  
  
Sailor System smiled. Bingo. Those weird capture ball thingies were loaded in a hopper. Get close and make a speech or try to reason with them and foom! They'd fill the air with those things and probably try to grapple her before her flight powers failed. By the time she'd been completely covered and looking like some sextoy, they'd be putting her in one of those suspended animation tubes and hustling her off to their dungeon "rehabilitation center" for a brainwash and conditioning.  
  
If they didn't want her to resist capture, they shouldn't have a website that Tuxedo Mercury could have hacked into.  
  
The Senshi leaned one elbow against a pipe, using that arm as a crossbrace for the other arm and carefully sighted her outstretched finger towards the other roof. "Crescent Beam."  
  
She quickly got her binoculars back up, giving an involuntary squeal of glee as the hopper bin containing the capture orbs burst open and the capture balls flew everywhere but where they were supposed to go. It gave her such a warm feeling of accomplishment to see the various girls getting captured by their own gadgets.  
  
Sailor System dropped off the side of the building and quickly found a pay phone. One call to the police later and she'd be able to get home and get ready for her trip.  
  
One had to have priorities, after all.  
  
She had just picked up the phone when something wrong about it registered.  
  
------  
  
The Legion Of Substitute Senshi realized something was wrong immediately just from the reaction all the guys had. Not to mention the two Senshi.  
  
"Something's wrong!" Sailor Earth said with a frown.  
  
*BOOOM!*  
  
Upon seeing a geyser of flame mixed with lightning streaking skywards from a few blocks away, Sailor Callisto smirked. "I'd say that was a fair call."  
  
"It's Sailor System, she's in trouble," said Doctor Mercury, opening a laptop computer and typing furiously away. "I've got it. Hang on just a minute."  
  
------  
  
Covered with an inorganic polymer that ate away clothing and formed a skintight rigid sheath, Sailor System had been completely immobilized.  
  
That lasted for five seconds at which point two of Sailor System's bad points came into play. One, the big bad Sailor System who had the ginzuishou and the raw mana of most of the solar system singing through her blood, was afraid of the dark. Two, she had a really bad temper. Not like Akane's "pound any available target" (usually Ranma) temper, Sakura was more likely to go find someone in desperate need of a lesson in pain. Combining the two was not a good idea, ie: getting her pissed and scared at the same time, then providing her with a target to vent on was not something you wanted to do if having all your body parts connected was something you wanted to continue with.  
  
She wasn't normally claustrophobic, but being in a skintight dark cage where she couldn't move was something that really began to get to her. She slammed open the connection to the ginzuishou, brought in full power channels from her planets, and to bloody hell in giblets with the consequences.  
  
------  
  
The capture team knew that the latest polymer couldn't be broken by normal means, to rip it required the sort of physical strength needed to lift entire skyscrapers. The polymer could withstand temperatures of 1500 degrees Celsius, though it had no insulation value. It was shockproof, waterproof, and airtight. They'd have to cut away the seal over the mouth and gag the prisoner, but that was the sort of thing they were well practiced in.   
  
As long as she couldn't say anything, she couldn't shape the magic and would be helpless.  
  
Except that along her chest, the polymer was bubbling and hissing and a bright light was showing.  
  
The capture team sprayed additional layers of polymer. Capture the patient first, then she could be brought to the institute and treated. All those nasty antisocial tendencies could be eliminated, possibly via mindwipe if it proved necessary. If she was a little oxygen deprived in the meantime, so what?  
  
Polymer boiled away from the spattered girl, disrupting the streams of solidifying goo. Naked, floating, and wreathed in flames, Sailor System snarled and raised a hand.  
  
The capture teams moved in, intent on capturing this clearly dangerous patient.  
  
Too filled with fear and rage to even realize what she was doing, System focussed her powers. "Big Bang."  
  
--------  
  
*BOOM!* *BLAM!* *BOOM!*  
  
Uranus got to the intersection and stared. As the others caught up, they also stared.   
  
Well, except for Doctor Mercury, who was still in the lot and playing with his computer.  
  
Racer Uranus noticed the figure at the center of the devastation and was suddenly glad they'd never fought full out for real.  
  
The asphalt of the road was burning, reduced to melted slag around the naked form walking down the street. Bodies littered the ground as well as little piles of smouldering ash that might have once been bodies.  
  
There was a very large crater that enveloped the street further down.   
  
Several girls with large guns were shooting at the glowing girl. Her hand came to point at them and the remains of the capture team became pillars of flame.  
  
"Waaagghh!" Tuxedo Moon managed to say, seeing something that looked more like a war movie than a sentai battle.  
  
Sailor System turned and stalked towards them. Discharges of various energies not quite concealing her as she moved closer.  
  
Everyone backed up slightly as she approached, raising her hand again as if to smite these insects before her.   
  
There was a visible click of recognition and the girl stopped discharging, just before her eyes rolled up and she started falling forward.  
  
Naturally, Venus and Jupiter both started forward. What was surprising was for Uranus to grab the girl before she could land on Doctor Mercury and start running off with her.  
  
"Huh?! What?" Mercury looked startled.  
  
Neptune knew Uranus better. "No. He *wouldn't*."  
  
The chase was fast but they all reached there in time to see Sailor System being loaded into a sort of coffin and then the van racing off. Leaving Uranus to face the others.  
  
"It's *her* fault," Uranus yelled at them. "Once she's gone it'll all be over. She won't get in our way ever again!"  
  
"You sold her out?" Doctor Mercury scowled at the larger man. "Do you know what they'll do to her?"  
  
"Rape her mind then rape her body then put her on display as a sextoy." Uranus blinked. "Your point, *little* man?"  
  
Uranus was strong. Uranus was tough. Uranus lasted almost five minutes of beating from the rest of the Knights.  
  
Not that any of them were able to convince him that he was wrong, of course.  
  
-------  
  
Sailor Saturn held her Glaive up. Those who assaulted her would not get through the Silence Wall.  
  
Sailor Earth held her Earth Sceptre up, ready to reinforce the Wall.  
  
Still, how long could they hold out if Sailor System had fallen?  
  
Upon seeing an anti-magic field being constructed around them, they knew - not long enough.  
  
The new Senshi had transformed back to human, hopefully they'd escaped.  
  
------  
  
She bade her time well. Those who had captured the Senshi were using Archdemon level anti magic seals. They were using very advanced polymers and had obviously researched each of their targets very well. They used highly developed weaponry, as evidenced by their defeat of several other superhumans.  
  
That they specialized in capturing superheroines and employed several supervillains showed their dedication to "curing" their patients.  
  
Morgana Le Fay was not exactly a young teenager to act rashly. As they could block even goddesses of first class or lower from utilizing magic, simply going in and crushing them with spells was not an option. If martial arts alone were of use, then Sakura would have gotten free on those skills.  
  
However, she didn't need to be alone and she didn't need to be a front line fighter. That the other side had a powerful archimage on their side *did* make this her business, but Merlin never led a charge into battle either.  
  
"They've used EMP and nanotechnology dissolvers to paralyze or disable other cyborgs and androids, then have reprogrammed them as just more security guards," Morgana warned. "Same with near humans and some humans they've deemed useful. So you're going to see people who would normally be your allies who will put you in a kill or be killed situation. Not a preferred circumstance, but if you're defeated know that they'll cheerfully haul you off - your maiden circuits erased and reprogrammed to be just more loyal guardians. Whether your soul is electronic or spiritual, you're just seen as raw material to be processed."   
  
Sabre Marionette Mercury nodded. "Combat parameters loaded. Scan results indicate that they are down to four EMP cannon, seven rifles equipped with dissolver missiles. Recommendation is for a blitzkrieg assault. No mercy asked or given, self destruct charges ready in the eventuality of capture."  
  
"We fight!" Sabre Marionette Jupiter insisted. "Jupiter Armor, Suit UP!"  
  
--------  
  
Kasumi enjoyed being helpful. No, actually it was more accurate to say that she *needed* to be useful. A basic component of her personality was that she needed to be busy, and she enjoyed routine tasks of a nonthreatening/traditional nature. Losing herself in a routine much as if it were a meditation exercise. In Kasumi's case, following the death of her mother, she had thrown herself into taking up all the household maintenence tasks and the role of mother to her two younger sisters. Housework had become her mantra, it centered her and allowed her to contribute.  
  
As housework was not necessary in the base, Fess hadn't been sure exactly *what* she could do to be useful until her father relented and allowed the Tendo girls to return home.  
  
Since the meeting with Doctor Tofu had apparently not gone well, Kasumi had returned in a state of high anxiety - though you needed medical scanners to be able to determine this. Fess had determined that Kasumi needed a task to do, and to feel useful, but her skill base was definitely not in anything that couldn't be handled elsewhere.   
  
The central computer that was Fess checked a few things and decided to try something relatively simple that could have been accomplished much more efficiently by remotes, but that should be sufficiently interesting to the nineteen year old that she could distance herself from whatever was stressing her. Mnemonic teachers could then give her the option of learning other skills overnight if she still wanted to be of use and the aforementioned father was still being a pain in the butt.  
  
"Bracer Of Osiris?" "Uhm, check."  
  
Due to having robotic devices that could scan for magical wavelengths and travel enormous distances, various "lost" items were being gathered to the base. The lack of information about magic was seen by both Fess and the various marionettes as a major problem. As well as a potentially useful database considering the spells that Greylle had demonstrated previously.  
  
"Philosopher's Stone?" "Yes. It's here. I mean 'check'."  
  
Of course, the information that orichalcum could block magic had meant synthesizing the compound, putting the items collected into cages made of the substance, and then helpfully enscribing the names of the devices upon the cages.  
  
"Statue of Miao Nyan Mew?" "Oh my, it looks a little like Akane. Check."  
  
So having Kasumi help inventory the magical items already collected meant that she could feel useful without actually doing that much.  
  
"Ark of the Covenant?" "Nabiki would like to see this, I think. Check."  
  
As long as Kasumi didn't actually try to handle any of the items in question, she would be safe. It would not do, for example, to have her handle the Statue Of Miao Nyan Mew and turn into a cat as soon as she was scratched by the claws. Or what could potentially happen if she handled the:  
  
"Royal Faerie Circlet?" "Check."  
  
"Necronomicon?" "Check... It appears to have crawled into a corner of its cage and is whimpering?"  
  
"It's all right, Kasumi. It isn't a nice book anyway. Excalibur?" "Check."  
  
"San Greal?" "A wooden cup? Check."  
  
"Durandal?" "Check."  
  
"Jeannie Bottle?" "Check."  
  
"Bastet Medallion?" "Check."  
  
"Talismans of the Rat, Dragon, Ox, Snake, and Horse?" "Uhm, I don't see... oh yes. Check."  
  
Fess did register at several points where it looked like Kasumi wanted to go over and handle a particular object. Just in case there was any evidence that the human was being possessed, a tranquilizer dart was aimed at the girl at all times. So far there had been nothing to indicate such an attempt, though the Necronomicon might have attempted it. Except for the fact that the book was currently surrounded by completely antipathic items. Fess was considering having the item moved into its own storage vault, possibly on Mercury. The odds of setting up anything approaching terraforming on that planet were negligible, and frankly the AI didn't see what the point of colonizing that particular world would be.  
  
"Book of Shin Shi Le?" "Check."  
  
"Fabulous Nightingale?" "How pretty. Check."  
  
"Amulet of Zulo?" "Check."  
  
"Book Of Amun-Ra?" "Check."  
  
"D-Hopper?" "Check."  
  
"Jade Orb Of The Elder Wyrm?" "Ah... Oh, that must be it. Check."  
  
Unfortunately, even with all this, Fess couldn't figure out one thing that Kasumi Tendo could do that really would be useful here. Well, maybe she could work on the gardens being developed on Mars. A human sense of aesthetics might be helpful.  
  
"Aegis Shield?" "Check."  
  
"Wandering Jar?" "Uhm. I don't see it."  
  
"Never mind. We'll check back later. Hell Toupee?" "...check..."  
  
"Lance Of Longinus?" "Oh my. It's very... big. Oh. Check."  
  
Unfortunately, supporting human life on Mars would be rather uncomfortable at this point. Sort of like being in a prison cell. Much of the work was being done under open conditions on Mars, with sealing domes being one of the later stages.  
  
"Spear Of Destiny?" "Doesn't look that impressive. Check."  
  
"Dagger of Kamui?" "Check."  
  
"Mirror Of Rassilon?" "Check."  
  
"Lucky Charms Of Erin?" "Yes."  
  
Fess wondered if it might be advisable to use her in a PR role instead. No, that probably wouldn't do. Initial indications were that Kasumi Tendo preferred a more physical role: keeping her hands busy as it were.  
  
"Rod Of Priapus?" "...that looks rather hentai."  
  
"Cube Of Chaos?" "Check."  
  
"Talking Mirror?" "I'm here." "Oh hello there Mirror-san. Check."  
  
"Monkey Paw Of Really Screwed Up Wishes?" "Check. Is it supposed to have all these spirit wards on it?"  
  
"It's for the best really, Kasumi. Crystal of Feng Long?" "Check."  
  
Several other dozen jobs were considered and discarded. Perhaps she could learn medicine? Humans preferred the human touch in certain venues. Nurse Kasumi?  
  
"Golden Book of Osiris?" "Check."  
  
"Book Of Elven High Sorcery, Unexpurgated Version, Volumn XII?" "Check."  
  
"The enchanted sword 'Foebane'?" "That's what the label says. Check."  
  
"Sceptre Of The Passing Wind?" "Uhm, yes."  
  
That actually might work out fairly well. Personality profiles indicated that 'Nurse' would work out fairly well: it was a traditionally feminine role, full of busy work, had a high amount of usefulness, and was very much in demand outside the base - therefore after practical experience to support the mnemonically enhanced skills Kasumi would be able to find work elsewhere if she so desired. Fess noted to broach the subject later.  
  
"Orb Of Fitful Illumination?" "Check."  
  
"Silver Millenium Big Book Of Secrets?" "Check."  
  
"Amulet Of Hebe." "She says I should wear her? Uhm, check."  
  
"Tell her we'll get back to her on that. Chain Of Command?" "Sorry, Hebe-san. Check."  
  
"The Dead Parrot?" "Are you sure it isn't just stunned? Check. Oh. There's the Wandering Jar!"  
  
"Noted. That should be it. Thank you Kasumi."   
  
Kasumi sighed inwardly. She hoped they could find something interesting for her to do.  
  
---------  
  
The "doctors" at the Grimlok Institute knew well what they had here.  
  
Sailor System was powerful but ultimately human, and therefore she was vulnerable.  
  
The Guardian Of The Ginzuishou was a martial artist and powerful at magic, so several sets of capture teams had been used. Drain off enough of her power in the initial conflict and she could expend her power taking out dummies and drones. Then use poison gas, special magical attacks intended to stun or disorient her, and attack until she collapsed. Then bind her in polymers again, tie her up, and use energy draining equipment to keep her from recovering any.  
  
Then a section of skin would be cleared of the immobilizing polymer. A "Witches Brew" of morphine, sodium pentothal, and curare would be administered. With her psyche under that sort of assault, and helpless in her bonds, repeatedly raping the girl would eventually produce a more pliant mindset.  
  
Of course, her mind afterward would tend to be childlike and her IQ might be lowered a few dozen points, but it was for her own good after all. The poor girl had clearly demonstrated megalomania, an unhealthy fascination for violence, and didn't play well with others. She could not accept her own femininity either, often being terribly tomboyish. She showed signs of being a conservative member of the religious right in many respects. Clearly this was unacceptable and curing her of these tendencies was what was required of any correct thinking health institute such as their own.  
  
The weakly struggling girl was loaded into the capture area and prepped for her treatment. The layers of polymer left her blinded, gasping through her mouth, and unable to move.  
  
Now they just had to close the anti-magic wards around her to keep her from being able to recover her magical reserves.  
  
---------  
  
All of this might have ended badly except for one tiny thing.  
  
Warnas hadn't bothered to overwrite Greylle's file into Sakura as a permanent alteration since he didn't actually have that much trouble with a goody goody dragon as long as he kept to his agreement. So it had been constructed so that it could come apart normally in a number of circumstances because Warnas didn't want to bother with it later.  
  
The wards slamming into place caused Sakura to become Greylle, and as the human form was maintained by an innate magical ability, something occurred.  
  
First the polymer tried to hold. It was stronger than steel and resistant to most forms of energy. Then the room tried to hold. Built to hold superpowered heroines who didn't want to be there, it was composed of steel and reinforced stone and reinforced by both magic and forcefields. Then the building tried to hold. It was a relatively normal building from the outside but was built to be a prison.   
  
In berserk mode, even a young dragon is something to be feared. When the polymer abruptly sundered from an all over attack, the wards were broken a moment later. The Ginzuishou, no longer suppressed, registered that its current host/user was in mortal danger and now had a higher reservoir of mana and ability to tap into such things than Usagi Tsukino had. Less than she would eventually have as Queen Neo-Serenity but as both a young adult dragon and a cleric he had more raw magical power potential than your average teenage magical girl. Even if he didn't normally have any nifty attack phrases.  
  
The Binding snapped back into effect and noted an attack on its Host's identity. A counterattack was started.  
  
A blast of frost was breathed at the reinforced walls. The entire room, including attending physicians, was quickly covered. They shattered as an entirely too cramped dragon flexed and clawed his way out of the room, then the building, then spread wings and roared his unhappiness with the current state of affairs and flew off as royally p.o.'ed as a dragon can get.  
  
Which is pretty darn p.o.'ed.  
  
---------  
  
Seeing a set of warehouses erupt and something large claw its way from them and take off with a screech, one *might* start hitting the Godzilla alarms.  
  
Except that at a "mere" 52 feet in length, this dragon seemed a bit lightweight for those measures. The JSDF (Japanese Self Defense Force) therefore felt they could handle it.  
  
However, each and every man and woman in the JSDF had seen most or all of those Godzilla movies and was quite aware of the usual fate of their fictional brethren.   
  
Once the various gunships, jets, tanks, and troops were able to determine that the big flying reptile was heading *out* of Japan at a fairly good clip - the common consensus was: don't attack it unless it doubled back and started tearing up the real estate. That dragons were not necessarily bad guys in either Chinese or Japanese literature, and that they were rare enough to qualify as an endangered species, were among the points argued with various groundbased officials who were nowhere near the line-of-fire themselves.  
  
By the time everything was straightened out, the dragon wasn't in Japanese airspace anymore and it was dismissed as a moot point.  
  
-------  
  
Fess had mobilized and the remains of the prison were sifted through by government officials who had these really neat dogs that accompanied them. The Emperor and a number of the Diet special committee were quite alarmed at what they found below the surface, with the excavation assisted by "sailor suited warriors of love and justice" even if they happened to be androids.   
  
Of course when some surviving people started using EMP guns among other things on those androids, as well as missiles containing viral programs, magnetic shackles and the like, they were designated enemies. Other androids were found and defeated as well. Some by the Sailor Marionettes, some by android dogs, some by the special strike team selected by the Diet and outfitted by Fess, and even a few by Yuka in her hardsuit.   
  
When the word got out that Mighty Tetsuwan (aka Astro Boy) had disappeared years ago because these people had captured him and gutted his circuitry in order to study his manufacture, the public outcry was considerable. Nor was Tetsuwan the only one.   
  
Not only had their childhood heroes been destroyed, some had been mindwiped and their "corpses" brought back to life under different programming. Enough of this was leaked to the press that the Grimlok Institute would likely be publically lynched if they ever set foot in Japan again.  
  
In the meantime Fess studied their technology so as to better foil it in the future, and those androids that could be salvaged - were salvaged. Though their original programming had been erased in order to impress them as loyal servants of Grimlok, some approximation of the original personality could be made based on old records. In the cases that this was not possible, changing their allegiance from their former Masters to something a bit less criminal was deemed necessary by the government. Fess argued this point: if they had been human such tampering would have been criminal as well as immoral. Simply reprogramming these androids was setting a dangerous precedent.   
  
During all this, Fess was tracking a dragon who obviously was submerged in his rage. This was made more difficult by his tendency to use ley lines to teleport along. Once he came to a halt, Fess notified a few people who might be helpful.  
  
--------  
  
Fess had explained to the various currently male Senshi that in their current forms he wouldn't necessarily recognize them. Otherwise either Minako or Ami *might* have been able to reach him. Explaining that they'd been romantically linked in past lives, and demonstrating with holographic representations of scenes scanned by computers that even Greylle hadn't realized were there. He didn't mention that the Basalt scenes no longer applied among others, or that these had been downloaded from an Yggdrasil FTP-equivelant site for still others.  
  
Andy and the rest of the male Senshi handled the scenes with Princess Jupiter going out with Basalt quite well. Makoto got a few teasing comments on her dumping of Basalt only to try and come back later and pick up where she'd left off.   
  
Setsuna had just *stared* at the tousle-haired satisfied and/or satiated vision of an earlier version of *herself* answering the door. She'd never... had she?! Of course, if she *had* she could have sealed those memories in order to be able to function.  
  
Minako and Usagi flirting shamelessly with their "pet" dragon Orion was also easily handled by the various Senshi. Other than some good natured teasing continuing with different targets.  
  
Rei pursuing the dragon in yet another realm allowed Usagi to payback Rei somewhat.  
  
Then Ami's scene played. Hot springs. Consummation of a marriage. In glorious 3D. Clearly showing how Ami took charge of the situation, kept control all the way, and even though she was clearly embarassed had that look of sheer determination through it all. Then the just absolute and utter contentment displayed by Ami as she cuddled afterwards.   
  
"Uhm, cold shower?" Haruka asked, his voice hoarse. Many nods from others who were clearly at odds on how to handle their reactions.  
  
Fess came to the belated understanding that as they had been male less than a week, the Senshi had very little idea on how to handle natural male reactions to seeing scenes like that.   
  
As Fess activated a trail of lights in the floor to take the boys to the bathing room, the computer was able to at least console himself that none of these guys were going to be up to a long flight leaving immediately.  
  
-------  
  
Hotaru fidgeted. According to Fess, only someone that Greylle-sama trusted completely could reach him when he was in this state. Unfortunately, there weren't many that this could be said to be true about. When Fess had revealed that she was one and the computer's first choice, Hotaru had felt...  
  
Well, she wasn't really that comfortable with the emotions she'd gone through at that statement. The time to sort through those feelings on a long trip had been quite welcome.  
  
The scenes of the other Senshi and her boyfriend had been enlightening. An immediate question asked had been necessary. Had any of them *stayed* with Greylle-san? The answer had been hesitant but no. Fess had mentioned that many of the breakups had been no one's fault but outside forces acting to make the relationships unstable.  
  
Hotaru Tomoe had never known a friend. Never been kissed. Never had a boyfriend. Physically she was sixteen. As far as an education was concerned, she was fourteen. When one subtracted the amount of time she had been possessed by the Mistress Nine entity, she was even younger.  
  
To her, a fiance was someone she'd be with for the rest of her life. Someone to be friends with. The rest of it she technically knew the basics of but it was all so strange. Strange, but now that she was physically sixteen it set up all sorts of odd feelings within her. How could she handle that sort of relationship? Did she want to? Why did her stomach ache?  
  
About three hours into the flight, ignoring Snoopy at the pilot's seat, Hotaru addressed a question to the elaborate wristwatch she'd gotten from Fess. "Fess-sama?"  
  
"Yes, Tomoe-san?" The pleasant voice sounded a little tinny from her watch.  
  
"Do you think that I... I mean do you think that Shard-sempai and I...?"  
  
"I think so," said Fess kindly. "Amaterasu clearly thinks so. In those other lives you and he have gotten along quite well. The only obstacle you face is that he will tend to view you as his little sister unless you manage to break him of that habit."  
  
Hotaru nodded. That had been exactly what Amaterasu had said. How to break that image? Well, other than using the methods that Ami had used in that hologram. Hotaru most definitely did *not* feel up to such drastic steps.  
  
The Goth girl was very uncertain about all this. She was going to rescue her fiance, but it wasn't as if she had a lot of experience in such things.   
  
There wasn't much she could do, after all. Her boyfriend was a dragon, or an alien prince, or an American baseball player, and occasionally a girl.   
  
Hotaru wondered if *anyone* had experience in things like this. It was all so confusing, however she *did* understand part of it. That girl with the short blonde hair and the other one with the green hair were responsible for her sempai turning into a girl, and then losing his mind, and then that blonde girl (currently a guy) was responsible for her sempai getting captured.  
  
Clearly, Hotaru needed to do something about that girl. Possibly something violent considering what she'd overheard about their plans to "deal with" Sailor Saturn.   
  
"Dimensional gate forming at ley line nexus," reported Fess' tinny voice from the watch. "Speculate that suppression of conscious identity by dragonrage is allowing him to escape this universe. Further speculation based on available data indicates he is either heading to a 'home' destination on instinct or to a place which he remembers as being target-rich. In the former case, as he is an Aramarian dragon, likely the Dragonlands west of Nihon in the dimensional nexus of Aramar. In the latter case, I am searching files to determine likely destination."  
  
Hotaru nodded. Unfortunately, if they were going to follow - a lengthy analysis might not be possible.  
  
--------  
  
The Coven of Chaos (or Juuban High Sorcery Club) was stymied.  
  
They had found the "Quick Bucks" spell and cast that on a hat. People passing by felt a minor compulsion to throw their spare change into the hat. One junior member kept an eye on the hat and emptied it occasionally, but it looked like their club would have money to cast some of the more expensive spells soon. *That* wasn't a problem.  
  
Their parents had been influenced by a "Silver Tongued Devil" spell, so those parents now found that they had absolutely no problem with little things like their kids staying overnight elsewhere or having older girlfriends/sexslaves.  
  
They had found the "Image Template" spell and now three of the Witches 5 (Cyprine, Eudial, Terurun) were wearing frilly French Maid outfits. They also had the compulsion to clean and tidy and speak in French accents, but Eudial was *very* bad at faking a French accent so they were thinking of ways to modify it. Mimette was asleep somewhere. She'd been a lousy maid, a worse Playboy bunny, and had recently been punished by Villuy in a scene from the letters column of one of those etchi magazines. Villuy was still a Playboy bunny and none of the club members had had the nerve to tell her to give up the whip yet. Villuy tended to be scary no matter what role they tried to put her in.  
  
None of these really had proven to be a big problem for the Club.  
  
They had recovered some of the magical apparatus from the site of the Grimlok Institute, but hadn't been able to get *too* far because their "Just Part Of The Background" spells had proven ineffective against those dogs and some of the women scientist types. This had been alarming, as it meant there were loopholes and limitations to their powers.   
  
There there was this whole bit with the daimons. The few daimon eggs that the Witches 5 had brought with them *could* be used, but only for going after worthless "pure hearts" and crap like that. None of the proudly hentai members of the Juuban High Sorcery Club were satisfied with *that*.  
  
When one of the members got the idea of combining the "Image Template" spell with a daimon seed and creating a more appropriate daimon for their purposes, it had seemed an ingenious solution. Having five girls and seven guys didn't strike the guys as being a good situation. More girls was clearly the solution.  
  
Unfortunately, the first daimon created had been "Lingerie Knight!" Asking her to demonstrate her powerful attack had been the first mistake. Haru, now Harumi, had not been at all pleased with the results. After putting up with a lot of high pitched yelling, Shingo had cast an "Image Template" and now Harumi was a lot happier with the situation. Now if they could just get her out of the bathroom.  
  
Worse even than Harumi locking herself in the bathroom was that Lingerie Knight had looked over the pictures of Sailor System and had declared that she understood her mission now. Then she'd teleported away.   
  
What *really* frustrated the Coven was that they hadn't been able to send anyone along to get photos.  
  
-------  
  
Fess determined from the data available *where* Greylle and Hotaru had gone. Finding the file, he realized that his Master had gone to a plane that had been forbidden him - where even powerful elven mages might find the odds daunting.  
  
This could be bad, realized Fess. Of course, worked into a dragonrage, it might well be that he'd needed to find a target - in which case rescuing someone dear to him while facing overwhelming odds *was* perfectly in character.  
  
Having the coordinates, Fess quietly set about getting and sending reinforcements.  
  
-------  
  
Uranus had been sure, as had a few others, that there was nothing to this bit about the dragon having known them in other lives and other worlds. There was no way that dragon-boy could have faced the sort of menaces that they had had to face, much less worse foes than they had.  
  
As the boys stepped out of the dimensional transport tunnel, doubts not only materialized but threatened to overwhelm them.  
  
"Confirmed," said Sailor Marionette Mercury. "This is Imperial Earth. Japan has conquered most of the known world. Imperial Rome at its worst, combined with psychics, demonology, magic, high tech weaponry, and a complete disregard for life that is not Japanese in heritage."  
  
Everyone listened but was mainly staring.  
  
Roaring in continued rage, the silver dragon ripped out the throat of a summoned demon and flew on to the next one.  
  
Sailor Saturn stood on the deck of the yellow submarine and fired off attacks that slammed into summoned demons and flying sorcerers. The brief flickering of some defensive shield brunted fireballs sent towards the Senshi of Silence.  
  
"Confirming that the two other figures are dimensional analogues of Shard-sama. Origin plane unknown," Marionette Mercury informed the group. "As this is the case, we know where he's going."  
  
"Where is that?" Doctor Mercury pulled out her own computer and began working with it.  
  
"There is an analogue of Setsuna Meiou present. The Imperial scientists who determined she had a prescient ability put her through several experiments to isolate the capability. That this shattered her mind and left her a drooling vegetable has weighed on Shard-sama since he ran across the record." The marionette continued scanning variables as the last of their group finally made it across the tunnel. "He is going to attempt a rescue on this version of Setsuna Meiou despite the fact that most of the people in this world are irredemably evil by the standards of your own world. Ami Mizuno, for example, is a member of Imperial Security who uses her knowledge of anatomy and medicine in order to efficiently torture her victims into confessing. Whether they are guilty of the crimes they are accussed of or not."  
  
"...confirmed..." Doctor Mercury was able to find a version of his original self, and a scan of the room she was in. Doctor Mercury then went to a corner of the roof and was violently ill.  
  
Makoto pointed at one of the flying figures. "WHAT is that?!" ~And how can I get *me* one of those?~  
  
The figure darting in midair was using a glowing green ring to materialize green giant hammers to batter down flying sorcerers.  
  
"THAT, as you put it, is one of the dimensional analogues mentioned earlier," the android Mercury stated. "Scan determines that he is wearing a Green Lantern power ring, an Arisian Lens, and has a Darkover Matrix Stone. Alpha Class esper. The other one appears to be Son Goku but an overdimensional scan reveals that he is actually Shard-sama in yet another incarnation."  
  
The ringbearer's other hand flared and a psi-sword appeared in it long enough to slash a few demonic entities to hash.   
  
The other analogue brought cupped hands forward. "Kame hame HA!" A particularly large demon turned to flying fragments.  
  
Then the next wave rose up all around them and the time for observation was past. (2)  
  
----------  
  
(1) The Grimlok Institute was inspired by the Grimbor Institute, one of those strange webpages i run into occasionally. While it mainly struck me as sick, twisted, and with a complete disregard for anatomical basics (such as circulation or how the heck the victim's skin would breathe, sweat, etc.) or commonly held psychological practices - it also seems at least somewhat original and that the webmeisters/artists had some fun. However, they would make GREAT villains. Particularly considering that most of their staff is of a villainous nature.  
  
(2) Considering Jurai Knight's comments in the past about the sort of fics found on my fanfiction.net page, his "Quantum Destinies" is a good read, and a slight dimensional variant of his Imperial Japan seemed in order as a target-rich environment. Because of that earlier comment, it is unlikely that permission would be granted for a crossover so this is a *variant* of that world. 


	15. Chapter 15: Batting clean up

Chapter 15: "Batting Clean Up"  
  
Retake.  
  
DISCLAIMER: Some of these characters originated from professional authors. They'll be returned as soon as I've finished here.  
  
----------  
  
The second one's name was Son Grey. His name had once been Gregg but due to the events at the Xanadu convention center, he'd physically transformed to Son Goku. His *mental* state was more a fusion of Son Goku, the original individual, and another being known as Grey. He could out-eat Ranma Saotome, was able to output enough chi to destroy Tokyo and only begin breaking a sweat, and enjoyed fighting far more than the original being. (Who had actually avoided conflict when he could most of his life.) Though *this* level of battle was beginning to take its toll on him and he found himself wishing that Vegita/Robert had come along.  
  
The third one was still trying to come up with a spiffy variant name. He was still going by Gregg otherwise. Due to events on yet another world, including a program that could alter reality known as the MasterPC, he was a "Justy Cosmo Police"/"Locke the Superman" level psychic who was capable of teleporting between star systems, telekinetically lifting star cruisers, and many other nifty things as well. Adding a Darkover matrix crystal (augmenting telepathy and force projection as well as Will scores) and an Arisian "Lensman" Lens (making esper abilities more efficient, particularly telepathy) hadn't been enough for the fight he'd anticipated though. He hadn't expected either of those "toys" or the Green Lantern power ring to last this long, not that he was complaining as he hadn't expected to last this long even with them.  
  
The raging fifty two foot long silver dragon shooting off the occasional "Mega Flare" with the assistance of the ginzuishou was Greylle. As soon as the dragonrage passed, he'd be sufficiently exhausted that he'd likely pass out.   
  
Ahead of them somewhere was a version of Setsuna Meiou who had been turned into a drooling idiot by several evil persons, but in this Imperial Japan timeline the question wasn't who *was* evil but instead who was *not.* The answer of which was: "not many." Here in the heart of the Empire, with the Secret Police/Security forces everywhere, not being a vicious person with few or no redeeming qualities was not tolerated so even those holdouts were few and far between. Here schoolgirls would brag to their schoolchums about seducing tentacle demons and what bargains they had gotten for their worthless virginity or souls.  
  
In other words, if you wanted to slay evil without worrying about killing innocent bystanders, this world was darn near perfect. Innocence was something to be mocked here, morality of any kind in short supply, betrayal of others to further one's self - normal game.  
  
In this world, Ami Mizuno worked for Security where she studied and trained to be an Inquisitor and use torture to gain confessions from those who were out of favor. Haruka Tenou had found out that her lover Michiru secretly practiced European artforms and had turned her in for the crime for the equivelant of a week's wages. Soun Tendo was a high ranking member of Security who would sacrifice one or two of his daughters if he thought it would gain him further favor.  
  
Beryl's Dark Kingdom could only be envious of this place.  
  
---------  
  
The ginzuishou, in this reality at least, was not truly sentient in a human manner. Giving the Eternal Silver Millenium Crystal an intelligence would have been to possibly undermine the authority of the Royal Family. Instead, it had slowly developed a rudimentary almost animal intelligence because it had been used by Serenity's line and they had channelled their thoughts and dreams for the thousand years of the Moon Kingdom. It was a very powerful battery that could draw on the lifeforce of the wielder when depleted, but could potentially destroy a solar system on doing so.  
  
The Binding *was* sentient, though in the manner of an AI program that hadn't quite gotten the knack of the whole thing. It had been designed as the outcome of a wish granted by a Being several orders of magnitude more powerful than the ginzuishou.  
  
The ginzuishou had a number of directives impressed upon it as a side effect of the various wills that had been impressed upon it at that time. The Binding was there to keep its host from permanently dying or becoming incapacitated.  
  
The Binding fed power into the ginzuishou with a request.  
  
The ginzuishou analyzed the request within its own parameters. Its current host was well suited to it - having a mana reservoir greater than Sailor Moon though less than Serenity. Said host was fighting for love and justice against a host of evil - pretty much the sort of thing Serenity's line had done. Said host was actively trying to rescue a member of Serenity's court who was suffering and injured. Everything checked out. Allies were needed. A connection was found and exploited and two of the host's extradimensional selves were added.  
  
In its own way the ginzuishou marvelled at this. If it had not been fed the manner of doing so by the Binding, it would never have thought to graft itself to the dragon as a means of freeing the Senshi. Much less this summoning of other selves of the wielder or summoning allies by the same method. It filed the method away for later use.  
  
Both the ginzuishou and the Binding (the crystal not thinking of itself much at all while the Binding was aware of itself) marked the arrival of an inadequate calvary. Some were Silver Millenium in origin. Others were not. Still, for all their forces, they were simply not up to the task.  
  
The ginzuishou, gaining more independent existence due to interfacing with the Binding, queried this other force. Serenity or Sailor Moon, both could "evolve" somewhat to a more powerful form. The crystal wondered if dragons could do the same. The Binding responded and the two worked together.  
  
Greylle roared and abruptly lengthened to ancient wyrm status, one hundred and fifty feet long not counting an additional sixty feet of tail. More importantly, his magical reserves and capabilities increased dramatically.   
  
The ginzuishou wondered if anything more was possible. The Binding found possibilities.  
  
With another roar, Greylle "evolved" to Bahamut Zero.  
  
The two conferred. Current allies in danger of being overwhelmed. This would not do. More allies were summoned using the capabilities of the new host.  
  
------  
  
The Japanese Empire had conquered all of Asia and had ruled it with an iron thumb. The North American West Coast was also under their domain, as were large sections of what would have been Russia in another world. The other Empires in this world: Germany with most of Europe, Britain with its colonies, New Rome with parts of the Mediteranean, and the so-called Free Kingdoms (tiny little cities in impoverished areas that nobody had bothered conquering because there was nothing to be gained and it was someplace to send your political exiles) were all smaller and only survived by uniting resources against Japan.  
  
Japan had survived countless attempts at insurrection and attempts by territories to break away by utter ruthlessness and the technological and magical resources it could throw against any rebels. Summoning demons was only part of their bag of tricks, the vampire lord known as Ieyasu was still Emperor and quite powerful in his own right.  
  
The mages and necromancers and espers were all those who had flourished in this empire where ruthlessness and backstabbing were at least as important as raw power and innovation. Only the nation-state and the Empire itself were to have the unflagging loyalty of the populace, though one's personal line/family was often just as important. Breeding programs had been in place for the higher caste members for over two hundred years to produce more powerful warriors and mages and psychics. Genetic experimentation and programs had been around almost forty years. Their technology might have been slightly retarded due to competition from mages and psychics, and there was no space program, but machine guns and assault rifles *had* been around for quite some time.  
  
That the scientists experimenting with dimensional transport had already been gathered up and shot for screwing up *this* badly, and that this line of investigation would now be banned by the Emperor himself, wasn't known to any of the invading forces. That their line of attack was heading towards one of the outlying research buildings and not towards any of the truly important buildings was noted.   
  
Still, an attack on the Imperial Capital even by a dragon-angel and its allies was intolerable. Forces were dispatched to strike at the weaker targets first so that all resources could then chip away at the big three.  
  
---------  
  
The various Senshi-turned-guys were picking themselves up from yet another attack where they'd been scattered like chaff.  
  
The marionettes, both Senshi versions and others, were blasting away with better success. Using one of Fess' brighter ideas, adding a phase-variance to their attacks, they were able to affect magical beings such as yoma and demons.  
  
Then came an assault of imps to mix among the troops, followed by heavy hitters once these lesser threats were disorganized. As most of the once-and-future-Senshi fell to the assault, they faded as recall devices transported them back to the base. Those remaining were briefly joined by the Lensman long enough to rally briefly before a large explosion caused those recall devices to operate en masse.  
  
Hotaru was *grinning* even through exhaustion. Snoopy had had to return already, the yellow submarine not built for long sustained combat. On seeing her falling, a six winged dragon had manuevered beneath her. Now she was riding on a dragon and picking off the occasional enemy that tried to attack from above and behind. Her fiance was *so* neat! And obviously Fess was correct. He trusted her implicitly. That had touched the girl ostracized by her peers for years in a very special way.  
  
"gIGA fLARE" said the very same dragon being ridden by the Senshi Of Destruction, energy arcing along all six wings and coalescing into a beam that could have wiped out an Imperial Star Destroyer. It was a really a pity that he wasn't aware of what he was doing, as it would have done his self-confidence enormous good just to know he was capable of such things even if most of it was being done by the ginzuishou and the Binding.  
  
--------  
  
He wasn't sure *how* he'd ended up here. He wasn't sure how he was still operating the power ring or Lens considering how he'd estimated they'd have turned nonfunctional about a half hour ago. Landing on a rooftop, he flashed the guys fighting off demons a quick grin. The lantern was pulled out of the beltpak. Time to recharge the ring. It was tempting to blast the spy-eye cameras out of existence, but first things first.  
  
"In brightest day, in darkest night,  
No evil shall escape my sight!  
Let those who worship evil's might,  
Beware my power - Green Lantern's light!"  
  
Corny, perhaps. Effective and he actually felt a little hyped up now that he'd renewed the pledge and recharged the ring. Putting the lantern back in the pak and zipping it shut, Greylle checked his psychic abilities. About a quarter tank.  
  
Then a quick burst of glowing green buzzsaws cutting through demonic hordes to give the good guys a break, and off flew the Green Lensman. (Current operating name, he felt it had a certain ring to it. Pun intended.)  
  
He noted the recall mechanisms pulling many of the invaders back. Good. Even with his current abilities and equipment this was not exactly an easy battle.  
  
Green Lensman floated briefly, realized where he was from reading a fanfic about it, and used his esper abilities. Teleport. Bounce off the barrier.  
  
High grade barrier against teleports determined to exist, Green Lensman focussed his power ring to conserve his esper talents. Fly to a window, shatter it with normal human strength, and he was in. Now all he had to do was rescue the fair damsel through a few dozen heavily trained and armed guards.  
  
Piece of cake.  
  
-------  
  
Fess had *wanted* to do this, but until the ban was lifted - had decided that it would be risking it too much to try it.  
  
Magical girls often had comic cute animal companions. Sailor Moon was a magical girl series. Frankly, Fess didn't really care for the mooncats but was willing to make exceptions for Artemis who had established a rapport with either Greylle or Basalt in previous lifetimes.  
  
However, Sailor Moon was *also* a sentai series. Color coded superheroes (like the senshi) who were prone to making silly speeches (like the senshi) and weird poses (again like the senshi) while fighting menaces from beyond (chorus:like the senshi).   
  
It was perfectly in keeping for the sentai genre to have giant robots. They did sometimes share a factor with magical girls series in that cute animal mascots (or cute female mascots or cute female anthropomorphic mascots) were featured.   
  
Magical girls often did *not* have giant robots. Frankly Fess did not equate the value of Artemis OR Luna with a fully loaded and armed giant transforming sentai robot. As a cybernetic intelligence though, he would admit to some natural bias.  
  
Greylle, as a student of Hephaestus, had a lab. Until Fess had been summoned to that world where his Master was trapped as Akane Tendo, he had been installed in a sort of factory. Not too unlike his current whereabouts in a way, though it had just been odd ideas that Fess had worked out on his Master's instigation. Usually because Greylle rarely finished a project before he'd been summoned off. Fess had been created specifically to carry out projects while his own creator was off on missions or punishment duty.  
  
One of those things that Greylle had worked on periodically was a basic idea. He'd come up with the basic designs just before he'd gone off on a long mission to Gehenna.  
  
Maybe it was time to send the signal?  
  
No. The Senshi had been rescued. The dragonrage lifted and the exile orders in place bounced a certain dragon back to a windswept isle in the Baltic. The recall orders were given for those remaining. Looked like the Guardians wouldn't be needed after all.  
  
Just in case, Fess decided that both the Guardians and Greylle's collection of giant robot vehicles would be placed on standby so they could be quickly accessed.   
  
----------  
  
Artemis and Luna did their best to sneak into the base. Sixth time's the charm, or something like that.   
  
"I don't know about this," said Artemis nervously, "look at how long it took us to get back from London."  
  
"Quiet!" Luna hissed at his fellow former mooncat. "I have a plan."  
  
Artemis tactfully bit back the observation that each of these spy missions had been a plan by Luna. Going in the front door with the usual "I'm a cat and I go where I want to" act had seen them picked up and deposited outside by someone who looked like the Terminator.   
  
Sneaking in an air duct had ended up with them trapped by some kind of superglue floor, followed by them being picked up and eventually deposited at a humane-care animal shelter known as "Animal Kingdom".   
  
Third had come their attempt to use the same air duct ("they'll never expect this") with avoiding that particular section of floor by leaping over it. There was a trapdoor just beyond the sticky section, as the two had found out.  
  
Fourth attempt - sneaking into one of the supply carts as it was wheeled down into the base. Apparently the hissing noise had been gas. They'd woken up at home.   
  
Then the attempt to learn about this new "dark god" enemy had gone rather sour with them turned into gender reversed humans.  
  
Artemis as a girl had a figure she'd have admired a lot more if it wasn't her own. This really long hair was a pain to take care of, and those high heels had *had* to go.  
  
When Luna had gotten amorous it had both been terribly wrong and terribly right. Artemis had never been able to refuse Luna anything for very long. Making love with Luna had been something the white-haired former mooncat had dreamed of, it was just the manner of it had been all wrong.  
  
Luna had finished quickly and left a disappointed Artemis to plan the next attempt onto the base.  
  
Which was here, with Luna posing as a health inspector. Artemis had to admit that with the suit and tie - Luna was very handsome. That Luna had gotten this shortskirted nurse outfit for Artemis was something that concerned Artemis on several levels.  
  
Which brought them to this side enterance. What was that hissing noise? Oh. Oh dear.  
  
Waking up in a cheap motel room in Osaka, Artemis wondered if she could just convince Luna to wait at least until they were in their proper bodies again.  
  
--------  
  
"Oooooo," said Greylle, wondering who'd beaten the snot out of him.  
  
"Looks like he's coming to."   
  
Greylle tentatively identified the voice as belonging to the transformed Makoto. They had gone into Warnas' realm, come out with a case of gender-reversal, and then... Everything was kind of blurry after that. He'd been in a fight?  
  
"Let's get in there and get this over with then," came another voice. This was vaguely familiar. Uranus?  
  
Details began filtering in. He was upright, held between two bodies. One was short but felt lean muscled. The other was taller and had a...  
  
A feeling of disorientation and the two bodies *changed*. Enough of a shock that Greylle was able to look around.  
  
Sailor Mercury was the short one. Sailor Jupiter the taller one. "Huhhhhh?!"  
  
"Oh my," said Kasumi.  
  
"You said it, sis," Nabiki acknowledged, eyeing the European style drawing room.  
  
Akane looked around, then went back to talking with Yuka and Sayuri.  
  
"What's going on?" Greylle finally got his feet under him, noting that they were all back in Warnas' realm and there were more of them this time around.  
  
"Shampoo get bad feeling about this."  
  
"Yeah. C'mon, Ranchan, let's leave these Senshi-types to their thing."  
  
"At last! I'm a girl again!" Rei hefted her small breasts and flipped her hair back. "It's GREAT to be a girl! Never gunna be a guy again, never gunna be a guy again!"  
  
The presence of Warnas slowly coalesced in the hallway.   
  
Finding themselves abruptly seated at a long dining table, several of those present wondered if maybe they should have found a different way of getting their transformations reversed.  
  
--------  
  
Mars was not the only planet slated for terraforming, nor was it the only place in the solar system that robots had been sent by Fess.  
  
A comet was redirected slightly so that it would strike Venus. This would not only introduce a rapid cooling trend on that planet but it would also add a great deal of water.  
  
Nitrogen mining on Titan continued to develop, with the first load well on its way to Mars. A second load headed towards the asteroid belt.  
  
The Nemesian Penal Colony, formed by bringing two large asteroids together and taking a handful of highly trained saboteurs and assassins and stranding them on that base, was developing nicely. Soon the asteroid's interior would be habitable, at which point the prisoners could be transferred and the ship cannibalized. A little nitrogen, some water, a few plants, and it could become a self-supporting colony.   
  
Little "workbee" robot ships darted through the big empty of space on their errands. In the asteroid belt these gathered information on the chunks of rock and ice for later use. Some raised solar sails and prepared for the long journey out to the Oort cloud. Others shifted to Jovian moons with special packages to set up mining operations and launching mass drivers. Still others prepared to metamorphosize themselves into solar energy satellites.  
  
On Mars, however, the dead red planet was building towards a massive change.  
  
---------  
  
"So you have returned," said the man at the head of the table. "Does this mean that you are willing to submit to the terms that the dragon Greylle Shard negotiated for you? We are, after all, both aligned with Order."  
  
There was a shimmer and the table in front of each of the guests was suddenly filled with a large feast as might occupy a Thanksgiving feast in America. Thickly laden plates with glasses of chilled wine appeared before each of the guests.  
  
Ami nodded. "It became obvious to me that you were making a demonstration here since all of us who were Senshi were able to remember our pasts more than Sakura-chan could remember she was Greylle-kun."  
  
Greylle looked extremely embarrassed and tried not to look at anyone. Remembering what had gone on while he had been Sakura was quite... strange. Even for his life. The emotional ties would take some time to fade and Sakura had been very attracted to a certain blue-haired medical student.  
  
Usagi merely looked at the platter in front of her, eyes large and slightly drooling before she began to dig in at a rate that would have earned her a "well done" from Genma Saotome.  
  
Ranma looked at that, briefly wondered if Usagi was a relative, then began tearing into his own plate because Ranma Saotome doesn't lose to some girl in an eating contest.  
  
Warnas Redsword, god of conquest, actually didn't have that much trouble with Crystal Tokyo. It was a land of absolute rule by a goddess-empress and so was mainly acceptable by his standards. In Crystal Tokyo, everyone knew their place and was content - their minds frozen to acceptance and contentment with the current arrangement. The strong ruled the weak, or exiled them off to cold dark planets to die.   
  
"I object," said Haruka, eyeing the food distrustfully and their host moreso. "What exactly is this agreement?"  
  
"One mile square is my desmense, you do not bother me. I do not bother you," Warnas patted his mouth with a cloth napkin. "My plans do not intersect your own, nor oppose it. The dragon here made an arrangement and listed you as allies that he would seek to assist as long as you didn't oppose me directly."  
  
"It's a good deal, Usagi. Though i can't make any deals for the Moon Kingdom only for myself and those forces i have input with. You might want to make a similar arrangement yourself." Greylle suggested strongly. "'Let sleeping elder gods lie' as it were."  
  
"Precisely. There are certain attentions I'd prefer to avoid, Toltiir the Jester being one of them," Warnas didn't sneer exactly, but his voice carried that sort of tone.  
  
Usagi realized several people were looking at her as she reached for another helping of mashed potatoes. "Huh?"  
  
"I disagree," Haruka said as she stood. There were groans from the rest of the Senshi. "You took me by surprise the last time, but NOW." She transformed to Sailor Uranus.  
  
Even Michiru merely stared for a moment. "You're not serious, are you?"  
  
"World Shaking!"  
  
The blast vanished before reaching the elder god of war.   
  
Greylle finished running around the table (having started at the transformation) and made a running leap towards Sailor Uranus, intent on stopping this before it became an even more FUBAR than it currently was.  
  
Greylle vanished in midleap. Warnas stood. "While the dragon fully intends to honor his agreement, apparently not everyone believes that I am capable of defeating all of you singly or together. Very well. Just so that everyone is clear on this matter, all those who intend to reject my logical offer, please stand."  
  
Usagi was the last to stand, clearly very reluctant. Ranma just wanted to wipe that smirk off this guy's face.  
  
"A demonstration of power is in order then. Give it your best shot," smiled Warnas.  
  
The Sailor Senshi unleashed their attacks. Ranma tried to hit the portly guy. Akane tried to unleash a rolling tackle.  
  
"Enough," said Warnas after two minutes of this. "That was what each of you considered power. Now behold *real* power."  
  
(flick)  
  
"Baaaa?!" "mooo!" "buqiii!"  
  
"Reincarnation in the traditional faiths of this land allows for reincarnating as animals," Warnas said to the startled barnyard menagerie. "Simple enough to alter it so that all of you were born animals. I could keep you as a petting zoo here. I could return you to the outside world where you would quickly revert mentally to the animals you now are. The only reason I don't do something like this is the agreement I made with the dragon, who would seek to return you to normal as soon as his memories returned."  
  
Usagi's long ears twitched and she wondered what life as a bunny would be like. Not all that much fun, she imagined.  
  
Ami retreated into her shell, feeling very much out of her depth as a sea turtle on a tiled floor. Though she was tempted to go over and bite the tail of that goat that was standing where Sailor Uranus had been a moment ago.   
  
Rei mooed in irritation. She needed to be milked. This was not a good situation. She could *feel* the evil power that this 'Warnas' had, and also his sincerity. If they left him alone, he'd leave them alone. Why stir up a threat where none existed? Uranus was just being an asshole.  
  
"Since the dragon *has* every intention of honoring our agreement, I could easily place you under his control," Warnas said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
(flick)  
  
Haruka sank to her knees alongside Michiru, her armor clanking as she did so. Why she was here was a question for someone else. She was slave-soldier and guard of the harem. As a janissary, she would not question her presence here. Her only thought was to serve the Master. Her only disappointment was that she had never been called to serve the Master personally.  
  
Michiru glanced about, while keeping her head deferentially lowered as a member of much lower caste in the presence of a Lord. Master was not present, and as one of his guard-concubines like Haruka, she kept one hand near her blast-sword where she could draw if any harm threatened the Inner Circle of his favored.  
  
Nabiki kept her eyes on the tiled floor before her, wondering where the Master was. She knew her place and station in the universe and was content with it - as lowly as she had been born, raised to the level of concubine was far better than it had been. Kneeling next to the guard-concubine Ranma and her sister-wife Kasumi, she could only hope that Master would come for them soon. This tile was cold, after all.  
  
"Hmmm. Too bad the dragon doesn't approve of the whole slave angle," said Warnas as he looked over the crowd. "This would definitely keep you out of my desmense and you'd actually all be happier in the long run. Knowing what a stick-in-the-mud he is, he'd probably object to having the boys as girls too. Maybe I'll just keep this around as a curse. If any of you enter my desmense again this will automatically hit the trespasser. Hmmm. May have to work on that, see if something amusing develops. Your dragon does have that affinity for so-called 'catgirls'."   
  
(flick)  
  
Akane stood, tail flicking nervously. Ranma was her Alpha Male, and she would protect him as best she could, but it was occurring to her that as a couple of martial artists they were *way* out of their league here. Even as the "Fierce Tigress Of Furinkan High" - she had her limits!  
  
Kasumi hadn't attacked with the others, she'd only stood to be polite, but understood she'd been linked to the opposition group. Being a member of someone's harem had felt so... deliciously naughty. Now she was back to being the plain old housecatgirl that she'd always been. Being one of Ranma's pride wasn't so bad, but...  
  
Mamoru blinked. Just a moment ago he'd been a slavegirl guard who'd wanted... ugh. Much better to be restored to manhood and as an Alpha Male to his pride. He'd had to trade off with Shard-san, wanting more time with Usagi and Rei and ending up with Haruka and Michiru as well. Still the others seemed perfectly okay with their new arrangement. Judging by how much purring Ami was doing lately the term 'okay' might be an understatement.  
  
"Perhaps you might consider this enough of a lesson?" Warnas relaxed against a wall, somewhat amused by the number of teeth and claws bared when everyone considered the tomcattish Haruka.  
  
(flick)  
  
Haruka shook her head, trying to clear it of the longing she had for the feeling of belonging she had as a catgirl or the precise focus and contentment she'd had as a harem guard. "Your tricks are not going to break us! We'll fight you no matter what! Somehow, someway, we'll win!"  
  
"Who's this 'we'?" Nabiki asked, backing away quickly. "You got a mouse in that seifuku of yours? I'm not stupid, I'm not expendable, and I'm *not* getting involved. Count me out of any battleplans."  
  
Ami cleared her throat. "Usagi, we Inners will back your decision, but perhaps a split with the Outers would be a good idea?"  
  
Michiru sidled closer to her lover. "Haruka. Tell me this is part of some clever plan on your part and not merely some outraged pride."  
  
Hotaru looked up at the elder god. A Death Reborn Revolution *might* work, but if all this guy really wanted was to be left alone, she could sympathize with that to some degree. "Actually, I never intended to fight. I just wanted you to bring back my sempai or send me to him."  
  
"The rules were simple, stand if you wanted to oppose me. You stood, therefore you opposed me. If you have changed your mind, that's fine." Warnas indicated the table. "It appears that your Sailor Uranus has some issues left to resolve. Anyone not wanting to share her fate, stand back."  
  
Hotaru and the three Tendo daughters stood back.  
  
"Very well, I will..." Uranus continued to move her mouth though no sounds were issued.  
  
"Yes, yes," indicated Warnas. "Very clever for someone with intelligence level of a turnip. Promise that you'll go along with my agreement, get into position to attack me later when my guard is down. Two things, Haruka Ten'ou. The first is that I don't need to guard against your feeble attacks. Even in Eternal form with your Talisman, you would have no chance against me. The second is that I am an Elder god. The dragon, as predictable as he is, has a better chance of surprising me."  
  
Usagi found herself being jerked back by Minako and Makoto and realized most of the Senshi were backing away from the portly figure confronting the two Outers. "Wait a minute! We can talk this out! We're all Sailor Senshi! We're all reincarnated Moon Kingdom Princesses. The soldiers of love! We shouldn't operate like this!"   
  
Nabiki blinked. She was still a reincarnated princess? She was pretty sure that had been removed when things were turned back to normal.  
  
Haruka found her voice. "Quickly, Sailor Moon, when his concentration is on us - strike then."  
  
Usagi stepped forward, shrugging off Minako and Makoto's grip (the two were kind of shocked to hear this plan). "Uranus-san! Neptune-san!" As Usagi stepped forward, so did several others, either intending to stop Usagi or follow her lead.   
  
"'Soldiers of love'?" Warnas repeated. He was not a god of love. He didn't understand the concept very well. He *was* however trying to learn a few things himself while he was in this "penalty box" of his exile. Lust he understood. Geas and magical compulsions he understood. Enslavement and conquering and control he understood. Love? "Well, maybe I can do something along that line." He'd already set the rules - to move forward was to be counted against him, it wouldn't do to change those rules just because many of those didn't actually intend to oppose him.  
  
Rei felt the malevolent power flare up and could think of only one thing to say. "Usagi no baka!"  
  
-------  
  
Greylle shook his head as he realized he'd been thrown from the pocket dimension and ended up in dragonform and knocking over a few trees in some wooded area. "Oh crud. What are they doing?!"  
  
"Getting in over their collective heads, I'd say."  
  
The silver dragon looked about briefly before zeroing in on the speaker. "You are... i don't know you, do I?"  
  
"Morgana Le Fey, late of Avalon, Sorceress of the First Circle. You are Greylle Shard, among other names, Aramarian silver dragon. Priest of Hephaestus, Bast, and a few others." Morgana sat back and watched the clouds, letting the dragon's primitive "Know Alignment" spell go off without commenting on how impolite it was. With her name and reputation, one grew accustomed to such cautions.  
  
"You know what's going on?" Greylle tried to force himself to relax. Her posture didn't indicate any clear and present threat, if she were collecting dragon body parts she'd have likely struck while he was stunned from the impact.  
  
"Aye. The Silver Millenium is being rewritten," said Morgana.   
  
"Oh great. Well, we're outside his mile so it won't affect us. What did Warnas do?" The dragon slumped down and arched his neck so that his head was on a level with the tree branch Morgana was sitting on.  
  
"The Elder god Warnas is what some would call Lawful Evil. A god of Order who does not concern himself with morality or similar concepts. His portfolio is the drive for control over others. As his name hints he is a god of war - not of defense as Borune or skill as Hoshime, but still a god of war. Soldiers and armies, whether they wear sailor suits or not, are within his baliwick." Morgana looked over at the dragon. "You *do* realize that four of those currently being affected view you with considerable affection, don't you?"  
  
"Huh?" The dragon pondered this. "That's a little hard to believe. Who?"  
  
Morgana snorted in a thoroughly unfeminine gesture, but at her age who cared about such trivialities? She wouldn't give away the game at this early stage. That Hotaru had latched onto him and was debating methods of convincing him that she was not a child? That Akane had not gone psychotic due to his intervention and the usual problems involving Ranma, and now was more at peace and happier with her life than ever before. More - that she knew the dragon was responsible and (though she'd deny it most vehemently) was really quite fond of him? That the shy Ami saw him as a good match and potential boyfriend? (Not to mention a possible method of getting out of the house despite her mother's restrictions since Mrs Mizuno wanted very much to gain access to medical technology and techniques at that base.) Or the "Ice Queen" Nabiki, who had real feelings blossoming that she excused and deliberately misinterpreted rather than admit to.  
  
There were others of course. Yuka had an interest in the boy, he representing so much in life she craved. Usagi felt her own connection to the ginzuishou, and thence to the dragon. Makoto and Minako who saw him as a cute boy. Shampoo who viewed him as a potential airen. Ranma was trying to get Ukyo to go after Greylle, feeling that if he accomplished this task then he could still have Ukyo as a friend but he wouldn't have *that* fiancee arrangement hanging over his head.  
  
After a few minutes of awkward silence, it was obvious that the sorceress was not planning on answering that particular question. "So what's going on? He isn't going to hurt any of them, is he?"  
  
"Oh no. He just rewrote it so that Queen Serenity had two children. The oldest was a boy who took after his father - a dragon of an allied star kingdom. His half-sister who became the Senshi of the Moon. Oh, and the various fiancees that older boy - heir to the Moon Kingdom accumulated. Well, it should be of some interest to you."  
  
Greylle took a moment for that to sink in. "WHAT?!"  
  
Morgana held her ears for a moment after that outburst. "Not so loud, they're going to hear you in Tokyo at that level. Yes, it's a terrible tragic story. Oh, and Ranma is now Mamoru Chiba's reincarnated little sister."  
  
"Hah?!" Greylle shook his head. "Wait a minute. *i* am a prince of the moon kingdom?!"  
  
"Heir, actually. There's a geas in place of the Senshi to protect you. Unfortunately, as Tsukino made the statement that they were 'soldiers of love', Warnas included that in the geas for most of them. Not that it was needed in all those cases, and it only affects Ranma in Senshi mode, but having her play blushing love-smitten schoolgirl is liable to be interesting."  
  
"But... but..."  
  
"Ten'ou and Kaioh are *really* going to have trouble with this," said Morgana with amusement. "They've gone from exclusively lesbian to bi, at least as far as you're concerned. Though if they could get their hands of some of that 'Spring Of Drowned Girl' water..."  
  
"...ewww..." Greylle shuddered his entire fifty-two foot length.   
  
"I wonder how long it will take for the idea to occur to them," mused Morgana.  
  
---------  
  
Haruka paused as the group went home. With *those* conditions waiting to slap them in the face should they return, it was obvious that they'd have to forego attacks on the exiled god. For now. "Say, Michiru?"  
  
"Haruka?" Michiru wondered at the thoughtful expression on Haruka's face. Well, it *had* been somewhat educational. Still, there was this naughty little impulse - a fragment of temptation. Just try crossing the border again and she'd never have to dirty her hands again. More power too. Of course she'd either be Bishojo Bunnygirl or Magical Maid or something like that, but it was surprising how little that prospect worried her.  
  
Haruka was thinking something naughty herself. "Saotome there was born a guy, and didn't regain a female form until some place in China, right?"  
  
"Jusenkyo in Qinghai province, Bayankala mountain range," said Michiru. "Yes, I remember."  
  
Haruka looked thoughtful, though a smile was playing at the corner of her mouth. There were ways to make sure certain individuals listened to her, and ways to remove a threat besides extermination. Perhaps. "So if we got some of that spring water, and splashed our Prince..."  
  
Michiru blinked and turned thoughtful herself, eyeing Ranma-chan speculatively.  
  
"What do you suppose our *princess* would look like?" Haruka and Michiru asked absently.  
  
Haruka smiled at her partner. "Bet she'd be a screamer."  
  
"We'd have to check that out," replied Michiru with a matching smile.  
  
-------  
  
"Brrrrr, I just got a serious case of the creepies," said Greylle.   
  
Morgana just smirked. This was just *so* entertaining. She wondered what would have happened if Lancelot had gotten hit with something like that. If she'd only known about Jusenkyo back then, or if Merlin had heard of it, then things could have gotten quite interesting in Camelot.  
  
"So, i'm now a Prince of the Moon Kingdom?" Greylle wondered if it might make things go any easier. Usagi probably appreciated the lowering of pressure on her. Now she could relax more without worrying about the whole responsibility of her Destiny. "Well, that *could* be a good thing."  
  
"You've just found out that a large number of fairly attractive and mainly good hearted teenage girls are going to regard you as their Prince and are going to have strong emotional bonds to you, and you're reacting as if I'd announced the weekend weather forecast." Morgana was slightly intrigued. "How atypical for a teenage male. Even a dragon."  
  
"Nah, it's not a big deal." Greylle chuckled. "It won't last. Love potions *always* screw up where i'm concerned. Urd, Freja, Aphrodite, Eros, or any and all of the love deities in existence couldn't give *me* a romantic subplot. Watch, it'll all fall through."  
  
Morgana read the dragon's absolute certainty on this, but wasn't so sure.  
  
"Well, i know what *i* need to do," said the dragon. "i need to eat. What about you?"  
  
Having decided her role in this adventure, Morgana stood and winked. "That... is a secret!" The words seemed to hang in midair as the sorceress vanished.  
  
Greylle winced. He'd always found that irritating when Setsuna pulled it.  
  
-------  
  
Cologne sat back and waited. She'd sent the message some time ago by the fastest method available. Having a dragon in the village wasn't a good idea, at the size she'd seen - he could roll over in his sleep and flatten a good portion of village. He had a temper problem, and there were those who would go out of their way to aggravate a male.  
  
Having a dragon *allied* to the village was much better in Cologne's view.  
  
The whole "Kiss Of Marriage" thing was to get strong bloodlines originally. Well, that and treaties signed ages ago. The child of a dragon, in Chinese mythology, had a portion of the power of that dragon. So getting a dragon into the village's genepool would be a good thing.  
  
Strong male fighters were very much desired by the women of the village, not just because they could produce strong babies of course. That was just the law. There were other benefits to having a strong healthy husband that had absolutely nothing to do with working fields or fighting off bandits and additionally most Amazons had a sort of strength-fetish.  
  
As Lilac and Douglas had proven quite a few years back, *smart* males were also valuable. Not as popular as the strong male, hormones and such being what they were, but there were those Amazons who really found intelligence and/or wisdom in a male quite attractive. Smart males were also brought into the tribe to benefit it. Though smart males were harder to keep in the village and were more often just occasional guests while they lived and worked elsewhere with Amazon wives.  
  
Males who had resources that could benefit the tribe were also sought on rare occasions. Again, keeping them in the village was not necessarily an option but to Cologne and most of the Elders that which benefitted the tribe and village was a good thing. So most of the Elders would hold their tongue about uppity males not knowing their place if the male in question benefitted the tribe while being apart from it.   
  
Smart strong males with resources that could benefit the Amazons? Drag them kicking and screaming into the tribe if necessary and make sure that they had good reason to view the whole village with fondness. There were ways to accomplish this with unmarried males that did not directly involve pressure points, martial arts, or rare Chinese herbs. Though all of the above *could* be used as well, it more often was not necessary.  
  
Shampoo was the greatest warrior of the village on a good day. Most of the others had a life beyond fighting and therefore lacked the focus that Shampoo had. Good match for Ranma Saotome as they had much in common and would produce strong warrior children. If Shampoo wasn't so prone to jealousy, having a couple of wives fussing over him would likely melt down whatever resistance the transgendering martial artist had.  
  
Shampoo and the dragon? Poor match. Someone not quite so focussed on the martial arts was needed.  
  
The dragon had been amusing and obviously had a kind heart. This last was always a good thing when dealing with magical creatures capable of destroying entire villages before lunch. His fascination for gadgets had been amusing and dismissed as of little consequence by Cologne earlier.  
  
The trip to Mars had changed her opinion on this aspect of the dragon. It was one thing to create the self-willed golems to go about their tasks in some hidden lair. To transport them all to that sort of distance and back? If China ever threatened again, the village could quietly melt away to some distant world. Instead of a tiny village relying on myth and seclusion to protect them, they could become a nation onto themselves - with the sort of wealth of knowledge and resources that would ensure their continuing survival for centuries!  
  
Ahem.  
  
Not that Cologne wanted to get the dragon into the tribe. Oh heavens no. Her? Completely innocent of such artifice. She wasn't interested in such things as this technology, ask anyone who knew her. She never could abide all this newfangled stuff.  
  
The spellcasting? No, didn't interest her at all. Healing and rejuvenation magic. Hardly useful at all. Nope. Though maybe she knew an Amazon or two who *would* be interested. A bit. Maybe.  
  
So if she sent to her village a little letter that detailed something that might interest someone out there, it was just a little mistaken wording that indicated that certain young Amazon girls ought to get over here where their Matriarch could point them towards a husband candidate and see who won.  
  
Or a coincidence. Yes, that might work. Coincidence.  
  
Salt and Pepper? Not very likely. The two were inseperable. Salt was usually fairly abrasive while Pepper was entirely too fond of extremes of passion. Of course, if they did something nasty to the dragon he'd likely just pound them severely and that might change their attitude towards him. Stranger things had happened.  
  
Sugar and Spice were *much* more likely to make a good and lasting impression. The swordmistress and the staff-master. Like Salt and Pepper, a odd couple that did *everything* together. Sharing a husband certainly wasn't that unlikely for the two. Sugar could be entirely too sweet, whereas Spice tended to be a bit ditzy. Getting them a husband that could look after the two would certainly benefit the tribe and in more than one way.  
  
Having seen the girl named Usagi Tsukino, not the marionette but the original one, Cologne had been reluctant to ask about Sash. The two blonde ponytailed disaster areas together? Well, best they meet as far from the village as could be arranged.  
  
Cayenne might have seemed an odd choice. She was older than the rest of the girls, scarred from old battles, and had survived a husband that had run into one of the many cursed mountains and not returned alive. What had been really bad was that he had returned undead. Something in the old redhead had died that night, but it might return if this dragon could use some form of purifying magic on the thirty-five year old.  
  
Azure was, well, less clumsy than Sash. Decent with tonfa. Possessed a strength level that was as great as her hand-eye coordination was lousy. A boyfriend she couldn't accidently squish would be a great draw for Azure.  
  
Tigar was too young, but the closest thing Cologne had ever seen to Akane Tendo the tigergirl prior to Nerima. Maybe she and the dragon would draw closer as time went on. If not, Tigar could spend time with her sister Sugar.  
  
Frost had a bit of a temper, but the largely self-taught mage would be more than eager to find a teacher for at least a discipline of her Art. The pale albino was likely to take to the dragon quite easily, and perhaps student-teacher relations could lead to something else.  
  
The shamrock girl Clover was clever and sneaky. Mention the possibilities of enriching both herself and the tribe and she'd be figuring out angles before Cologne could finish the sentence. Cool, calm, dignified. Clover would have a plan before the first day was out.  
  
Then there were the twins, Lin Lin and Ran Ran. On second thought they were likely to be annoyances and they wouldn't take well to big sister Shampoo failing in her attempt to woo Ranma. Well, too late to actually stop them. They ought to be here by now.  
  
There were the quadruplets, and bouncy cute identical quads ought to be able to reduce almost any man to fumbling stupor. That they'd end up sharing a man was apparent as all four suffered from some curse that whatever happened to one - all four felt. That the man would practically have to be able to bend steel in his bare hands in order to defeat all four or simply last the wedding night was also apparent. Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme would regard a shapeshifting dragon as a goddess-send.  
  
Yes, Cologne thought, this ought to work at least partially. If nothing else she could potentially start a second village if she could talk that disembodied voice in the base into the idea. She thought this likely, all things considered.  
  
Not that she wanted anything more than sharing tea with someone as long-lived as herself a century or two from now. Her, the matriarch of a primitive tribe, have an ulterior motive? Heavens no.  
  
Of course not.  
  
------  
  
The Martian city was lifeless, if you used the narrow definition of organic life.  
  
Sabashii was now a set of smaller domes all connected to a large dome. Each connecting tube was set up with airlocks and emergency bulkheads that could close off each section upon an emergency. Each dome sparkled in the dim sun like glass. Appropriate as that was what the bulk of each dome was constructed of.  
  
The city plans had been altered a bit to take into account for roofhopping martial artists and magical princesses. Sections had been made which could be easily replaced when damaged. The original plan had been to make things durable, and several sections favored this approach over the later concept.  
  
The city was a little like a submarine. Buildings could be easily closed off as completely environmentally independent.   
  
As for the big dome in the center, that was the most important part. The park. Right now it was soil and water. Later would come grass and selected trees and varieties of crops. These would provide not only food and air, but the necessary human psychological effects of an area of green.  
  
The lichen released to the outside environment was necessary for the long term terraforming, but without using magic it would remain long term.  
  
Like the meteors currently targetting the Martian landscape, or the comet on its way to Venus, some of the changes planned were huge and sweeping. Others quiet and easy to overlook.   
  
Sabashii itself was sizable and fairly obvious. More so when the plants finally took hold in the mix of martian and terran soils.  
  
It was barely noticeable when it happened, but at that point Mars was no longer truly a dead world.  
  
-------  
  
Another world entirely:  
  
When "dragon-him" and "dragonball-him" had vanished, Green Lensman had known that he was in deep kimchi.   
  
Oh sure, he had enough raw power to turn the average Tatewaki Kuno into puree of dog chow. He could easily beat the average Hikaru Gosunkugi and would not feel challenged in the slightest by an attack from Megane and the rest of Lum's self-appointed bodyguards.  
  
The problem was that *this* reality was *not* average. Here Tatewaki Kuno was a samurai, and the samurai were reknowned swordsmen *and* foul sorcerers. Here Hikaru Gosunkugi was a powerful necromancer capable of literally raising the dead. Here there was no Lum, but there was a group of street thugs under the command of Megane who trafficked in illicit drugs. Here was a world where evil ruled and corrupted nearly everything it touched. There could be no kind hearted Keiichi to call out in more than one meaning of the phrase to Belldandy's heart. There would be no Crystal Tokyo where peace and love would at least have a chance to grow.  
  
Instead you had a Tokugawa Ieyasu who had literally made a deal with the devil. Nobunaga Oda hadn't even been half as nasty. Ieyasu had broken his opponent's neck, drinking deep of his lifesblood and becoming a vampire that *still* ruled the Japanese Empire.  
  
Knowing that he had some time before all hell literally broke loose again, the dimensional wanderer encased himself and his rescued princess in a bubble of green energy and then moved with all the speed he could muster. Straight up.  
  
He might have considered himself to be ridiculously overpowered, but the Lensman knew darn well that he was *not* ridiculously overpowered enough to last for long here.  
  
*shift*  
  
The Green Lanterns were essentially cosmic policemen. In order to do their job, they had to be able to protect themselves from the hazardous conditions of space and move really darn fast.  
  
He'd made himself into Justy Cosmo Police, who also could move pretty darn quick and travel without regard to such things as vaccuums and hard radiation.  
  
Looking about the star system briefly, and deciding to use the name Justy Locke for now, he determined that there were no habitable planets present.  
  
*shift*  
  
Almost.  
  
*shift*  
  
Not quite. Something with a little more atmosphere.  
  
*shift*  
  
Something with a little less hazard in the biosystem.  
  
*shift*  
  
Hmmmm. Not perfect, but it would have to do. That moon over there.   
  
*shift*  
  
Setting his burden down, Green Lensman Justy looked over the fallen Setsuna Meiou and tried not to wince. Bedridden for years, thin as a stick, emaciated and drawn, with her mind broken and her psychic gifts overloaded by the medical experiments performed on her when she was barely twelve years old. Now at the age of twenty-four, it required special equipment just to keep her going. The lack of care was apparent anywhere you looked.  
  
In this reality, this timeline, that twelve year old girl had been one of the few innocents left. Someone who still believed that love and goodness were more of value than how entertainingly you could kill your first gaijin. They'd done this to her because her ability of precognition had been detected and they'd enhanced it, but at cost of her Self.  
  
After another scan determined that this planet's few predators were not inclined to approach such strange smelling creatures, Justy sat down near Setsuna's head and began using matrix stone and Arisian lens to mend a broken mind.  
  
-------  
  
Shampoo had heard it. Whoever went past that little hedge into that area again would be after dragon boy. Her Great Grandmother would not let her keep Ranma-airen *and* Greylle-airen (which Shampoo thought was really unfair) and so Shampoo had settled on Ranma-airen (who was a lot easier to understand and cuter). Unfortunately there was a lot of competition after Ranma-airen.  
  
Shampoo had also heard Ranma trying to get Spatula Girl interested in Greylle-airen.  
  
Get rid of obstacle + make points with Ranma-airen + prove she was a better fighter than the uppity girl with the spatula fetish?  
  
From there it hadn't taken Shampoo long to realize that if she could get rid of *one* rival in such a manner, then more would be better! She'd start with *one* though.  
  
"Spatula Girl, we spar?" Shampoo asked cutely. "Shampoo too worked up to sleep."  
  
"Well, I guess..." Ukyo had to admit she'd had this *wonderful* idea. Brain the Amazon over the head, tie her up, then zoom over to that manor house with a little package. Shampoo would be a lot happier chasing after Greylle-san and that would leave Ranma-honey available! The two of them would be a good couple, and she and Ranma would make a great couple!  
  
Shampoo and Ukyo smirked at each other, absolutely convinced they'd be doing the other a great favor.  
  
-------  
  
Warnas was known by many names in the Aramarian pantheon. Redsword was his most common symbol and naming: though the words spliced together could come from any of seven languages and sounded quite different in Hobgoblin compared to (for example) Tarakir. He was also one of the three major gods of evil: Warnas Redsword the god of war and conquering; Genmak the devouring void; and Surtagg the Destroyer. Where Genmak embodied entropy and Surtagg the destructive forces of chaos, Warnas was more civilized - for he was also one of the three Lords Of Order.  
  
Borune, the Worldsmith, embodied Order and Good. Hevrig, the Lawkeeper, embodied Order in its most pure state. Warnas was the god of evolution: the strong made the laws, slew or enslaved the weak, and their strength inspired or was passed on to others.   
  
The Godswar was something developed millenia ago. Each Age in Aramar had a divine guide, someone who would set the tone of things to come during that Age. An Age ended when a conflict saw a shift of that guide. The gods chose mortal avatars and retreated to let those forces do battle without the possibility of accidently wiping out that section of universe. As the Sixth Age became the Seventh, and Toltiir retired (many said he threw the battle because responsibilities were something he preferred not to pay attention to) Warnas the Conquerer found his position and a good fragment of his power usurped. Partly this was due to the machinations of Genmak and Surtagg. Partly this was due to a foolish mortal hero ignoring the prophesy and trying to cheat his way to glory. Partly this was due to the cleverness and power of the usurper himself.  
  
Because he *was* a Lord Of Order, Warnas abided by the terms. Sooner or later another Age would begin and his avatar would reclaim his place. In the meantime, he was observing things and planning while in a sort of "penalty box".  
  
At first he had dismissed the dragon's golems as just that. Or perhaps like the windup soldiers used in the Third Age. Now, however, he saw them as something else altogether.  
  
Admirable.  
  
The machines were alive in their own way. They could reproduce, come up with original ideas and approaches, move and emulate many things that strictly human life could. They could be as strong as their individual design allowed, and they could update their own parameters. In fact, they were *designed* to upgrade themselves within specific channels.  
  
These androids and robots personified order. Each knew their limitations, their assigned tasks, and did them. If one needed to become stronger or adapt to different situations, it did so. Of course, they had some peculiar ideas that seemed more in keeping with Borune's philosophies or perhaps those of Etragar's wife Hoshime. Still, even if you looked deeper into them - they remained very much Order-oriented with every bit and piece and programming thread combining to form the totality. Then every unit worked towards goals set for their common benefit.  
  
Quite admirable.  
  
Having observed from a distance, Warnas knew that Usagi Tsukino acted chaotic but was actually a force of Order in her own way. So were her cheerleaders.  
  
The god of conquest actually liked the android versions more than the originals, there was less chaos and more usefulness. A true Epic Villain would make quick work of the Senshi, and each of the "sailorsuited warriors of love and justice" would likely be dead. Whereas the same villain would likely only be able to incapacitate a few of the androids before they had upgraded to take advantage of any weaknesses, and then they'd rebuild or replace their fallen comrades.  
  
Usagi Tsukino was a crybaby who would likely fall apart if they ever faced half the sort of enemies they could in Aramar. Usagi II was calm, collected, and capable of doing great bodily harm to opponents who could kill Senshi. Usagi Tsukino turned into Sailor Moon who turned into Princess Neo-Serenity who could manage a respectable energy burst of White Magic. Usagi II now had an armor upgrade that granted her the ability to generate forcefields capable of deflecting Sailor Moon's blasts at up to 90% of her full power. No doubt there would be upgrades eventually.  
  
The Sailor Senshi, even with the enchantment he'd placed on them earlier, didn't work that well as a team. They had two groups with different agendas and priorities, and while their elemental powers all flowed from a single source - they were limited to a set of attacks with that power and some minor side effects. Sailor Pluto's haphazard viewing of time, Sailor Saturn's ability to heal minor wounds, Sailor Moon could use her attack to form a weak barrier, and so on.  
  
The Sabre Senshi had two things that their originals lacked: discipline and commitment to the team. Warnas would be inclined to add competency as a third thing, but some of the Sailors were learning. Their powers couldn't be combined as easily as the mana-based sentai team, but the androids could link up by physical proximity to share capabilities. Sabre Mercury could relay precise targetting information to Sabre Mars' plasma cannon.  
  
Warnas stopped his contemplation. Several of those he'd given warning to were back. Interesting.  
  
-------  
  
Fess noted the alarm he'd placed on a semi-autonomous drone near the "Penalty Box" and quickly determined a few things. First was to find where the marionettes were, their most recent upgrades had changed a few things about their performance parameters.  
  
  
Ami Mizuno II, Sailor Marionette Mercury  
Strength Rating: 150 pounds  
Specialty: Sensors and analysis  
Serial Number: AMI01  
Status: OK  
Running speed: 45mph  
Flight speed: 90mph  
Armor Upgrade: Sensors and Countermeasures  
Current Location: Penthouse, Cloudy Arms Apartments, Juuban  
Reported Activity: Study of interpersonal human relations in Mizuno penthouse. Source: "Whirlwind of Love" - television program.  
  
Usagi Tsukino II, Sailor Marionette Moon  
Strength Rating: 1.6 tons  
Specialty: Communication  
Serial number: USA01  
Status: OK  
Running Speed: 75mph  
Flight Speed: 150mph  
Armor Upgrade: Forcefield generation  
Current Location: Crown Arcade, Juuban  
Reported Activity: Analysis of exercises in hand-eye coordination and battle strategies. Source: Macross Valkyrie Simulator  
  
Makoto Kino II, Sailor Marionette Jupiter  
Strength Rating: 25 tons  
Specialty: HTH Fighting  
Serial number MAK01  
Status:OK  
Running Speed:45mph  
Flight Speed: 75mph  
Armor Upgrade: MegaVolt Knuckles  
Current Location: Shiido Dojo, Juuban  
Reported Activity: Acquiring martial arts techniques.   
  
Minako Aino II, Sailor Marionette Venus  
Strength Rating: 1.6 tons  
Specialty: Generalist  
Serial Number: MIN01  
Status:OK  
Running Speed: 75mph  
Flight speed: 90mph  
Armor Upgrade: Ribbon blades  
Current Location: Animate store, Kobe   
Reported Activity: Shopping  
  
Rei Hino II, Sailor Marionette Mars  
Strength Rating: 1.6 tons  
Specialty: Plasma Generation & Manipulation  
Serial Number: HIN01  
Status: OK  
Running Speed: 75mph  
Flying Speed: 90mph  
Armor Upgrade: Plasma Emitters  
Current Location: Amaterasu Shrine, Nerima  
Reported Activity: Selling shrine charms  
  
Michiru Kaioh II, Sailor Marionette Neptune, aka "Polaris"  
Strength Rating: 150 pounds  
Specialty: Magnetic field generation/control  
Serial Number: MIC01  
Status: OK  
Running Speed: 85mph  
Flying Speed: 90mph  
Armor Upgrade: Magnetic Amplifiers  
Current Location: Nekomi Technical Institute  
Reported Activity: Research of suspected paranormal activity  
  
Haruka Ten'ou II, Sailor Marionette Uranus  
Strength Rating: 1.6 tons  
Specialty: Piloting  
Serial Number: HAR01  
Status: OK  
Running Speed: 75mph  
Flying Speed: 90mph  
Armor Upgrade: Motoslave  
Current Location: Nekomi Technical Institute  
Reported Activity: Research of suspected paranormal activity  
  
Setsuna Meioh II, Sailor Marionette Pluto  
Strength Rating: 3.2 tons  
Specialty: Cloaking  
Serial Number: SET01  
Status: OK  
Running Speed: 75mph  
Flying Speed: 90mph  
Armor Upgrade: Shock Cannon  
Current Location: Misawa AFB  
Reported Activity: observation of military activity.  
  
This meant that it was the *human* Sailor Mercury, Sailor Saturn, and Sailor Pluto showing on the transmission.  
  
Oh dear.  
  
----------  
  
Hotaru quickly shifted to Sailor Saturn.  
  
Sailor Mercury blinked. "How come you don't have a nude transformation sequence?"  
  
Sailor Saturn shrugged. "I did earlier, but then I asked Amaterasu-sama to alter it. Now I can specify flashy or fast."  
  
The unspoken request was plainly visible on Sailor Mercury's face, though she forcibly shelved that conversation for later.  
  
"Activate your visor," advised Pluto. "We need to carefully monitor this so we know what it is we're dealing with."  
  
"Saturn-san, are you sure about this?" Mercury touched an earring and let the visor form. She was a little concerned about this though.  
  
Sailor Saturn nodded, her mouth a firm line. She walked forward down the dirt road.  
  
"Interesting," said Morgana, startling the heck out of both Mercury and Pluto.  
  
Having her hair sticking straight up and leaping into the air, to end up teetering on her tiptoes as her arms windmilled and she tried very very hard *not* to fall across that innocent looking border, Sailor Pluto was entirely too panicked to think dirty things about sorceresses showing up uninvited.  
  
Morgana kindly grabbed the two by their back bows and pulled them back. "Sorry about that. Morgana, a powerful sorceress here to advise the Prince in matters of magic."  
  
Sailor Mercury tried to look calm and not as if her heartrate was still pushing the edge of cardiac arrest. "Uhm, I'm reading powerful magic buildup around her. I'm having trouble interpreting it."  
  
The ancient sorceress kindly reached over and tapped a couple of buttons on the Mercury Computer. "There you go dearie. Quaint little thing isn't it? A little too cutesy for my tastes, but to each their own."  
  
"Oh," said Mercury, swallowing her immediate reaction to someone using *her* computer as the data started making a lot more sense. "A power up?!"  
  
Shooting a very unhappy look at the sorceress (yet *another* non Silver Millenium being showing up and messing around with their destiny), Sailor Pluto bit down her own reaction. For now.  
  
"Hotaru is going through this for a very simple reason, you see." The sorceress sighed. "Ah, to be that young again. Well, actually, once was enough. She despairs of convincing her boyfriend-candidate that she is anything other than a young girl. She has been well and truly coached that her main problem with becoming Shard-san's koibito is that he will have difficulty viewing her as something other than a child. She also has trouble with her status as the 'Senshi Of Destruction' as you have declared her to be, Pluto-san. As you can see the magic is reacting with her desires to form alternate templates to the Sailor Saturn identity."  
  
"I don't detect the other parts we were led to believe would occur," Sailor Mercury was specifically looking for the enchantment that would turn Sailor Saturn into a mindless loveslave or turn her to evil or something. "I still don't understand why she's doing this."  
  
Morgana rolled her eyes. "Okay. See if this makes sense to you. A not un-handsome young man has come to her rescue. She's been engaged to him and in the course of this engagement has been freed of demonic possession among other things. A girl who has never had friends and never been accepted by anyone has found a gentle, kind, and affectionate fiance who can accept her. As a result of that engagement, she also has begun developing friends and allies, skills and a role where her strangenesses can be accepted by the society around her. She's also dealing with her new age - and the hormones of a sixteen year old girl when she'd been quite a bit younger until very recently. There were three people she met recently, potential allies, who were ready to kill her until a certain fiance interfered."  
  
Sailor Mercury was mainly paying attention to the readings. "Oh?"  
  
"Frankly," said Morgana with a certain earthy tone to her voice, "if said fiance wouldn't be likely to panic and hide, and if she knew what to do with those raging hormones, I'd have expected her to jump his bones, drag him off, and make out like a crazed rabbit. It's certainly one way to establish a claim over a boy that others ought to consider."  
  
Shampoo and Ukyo froze as the wind seemed to whisper some really odd idea to them. Of course, then they went back to trying to beat the stuffings out of each other. Akane looked up as the wind passed by her and her sisters, ears going flat as she considered. The idea had been spread, but some ground was more fertile than others.  
  
Sailor Mercury continued half-listening as she went over the readings and recorded everything for more analysis later.  
  
Sailor Pluto just held ready to let loose a "Dead Scream" if the girl turned into something Dark Kingdom-ish. It was odd how a kingdom of love and justice didn't really concern themselves with either concept as much as reference them.  
  
Morgana smirked. "Dai-con bunnygirl? Magical Maid Hotaru? Tsk. Not much imagination, or is she just fairly traditional?"  
  
"Spatula girl get lost!"  
  
Sailor Mercury and Pluto blinked as they realized that voice had come from elsewhere and was not either of them, Saturn, or the now-transparent sorceress.  
  
Shampoo had finally gotten the advantage of her opponent, removed the spatula, and used a rolling throw manuever to give an okonomiyaki chef some air time.  
  
Ukyo twisted in midair, reaching for some throwing spatulas. "Get over there, you hussy!"  
  
Ukyo bounced off Pluto to land where she could renew her battle with Shampoo.  
  
Pluto landed hard on her butt, wondering if her dignity this night would *ever* recover, and realized something very important as her position became obvious. She was inside the boundary.  
  
There was a moment of shock while she tried to decide whether to scream, madly scramble for the boundary, or just "Dead Scream" the two idiots who had caused this mess.  
  
Ever helpful, Morgana called across that certain dragons seemed to have an affinity for catgirls.  
  
--------  
  
Cologne was glad to see the Amazons who had arrived.   
  
Azure fretted briefly. Frost looked bored. Sugar and Spice looked like they were quite unhappy about something. Sash had passed out and had a large lump on her head. Tigar yawned and inquired if it was too much to ask that they get the briefing done tomorrow and get some sleep NOW.  
  
"Well, that actually might be best, I'm not sure how much of what's going on here you would believe otherwise," admitted Cologne, not bonking Tigar on the head for once. The Amazon nonconformist was the child of an Amazon and a father who had been a mountain cat prior to a plunge into Jusenkyo. Perhaps it was just her feline nature to be contrary but Tigar had been getting into scrapes with the Elders since she could crawl. (Before the end of the first week actually.)  
  
"Oh come on, what does this country have that could be *that* strange?" Frost rolled her eyes.  
  
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"  
  
"That was Shampoo," observed Azure as a purple blur raced by.  
  
"I'msorryI'msorryI'msorry!"  
  
"That was Ukyo Kuonji, if I'm not mistaken," explained Cologne, taking two steps backward.  
  
"Who?" Frost asked, looking after the two running figures.  
  
"Come back here you two!" A tall girl with very long green hair and reddish eyes, wearing a maid's uniform, was clearly chasing Shampoo and the other girl.  
  
"Nyowrrrrr, wait a minute!" A purple eyed catgirl bounded off Frost's head, made an impressive acrobatic flip in mid air, and gave chase after the tall girl.  
  
Tigar looked after them. "Tigar got Japanese relatives? Tigar not know that."  
  
Frost blinked for a moment. "Okay, I stand corrected."  
  
-----  
  
"What?" Sailor Mercury stared despite the two being way out of sight at this point.  
  
"So we have Bunnygirl and Maid and Catgirl powerups for Tomoe-san and Meiou-san." Morgana shook her head. "Did you notice how Sailor Pluto lost a certain something?"  
  
"Huh?" Sailor Mercury said, hoping someone could make sense out of it.  
  
"Off hand I'd say that Pluto there likes to maintain a cold dignified image and is probably a control freak." Morgana shrugged. Maybe it was the pot calling the kettle black in this instance, but that simply meant she knew a bit about the other's situation, right?  
  
It penetrated Sailor Mercury's current daze that this was a fairly accurate summation.   
  
"Most likely something happened in her past that she feels a lot of guilt about, also has low people skills. Bet she spends a lot of time alone. So some deep scars that she uses the 'icemaiden' image to protect herself against further emotional involvement." Morgana couldn't help analyzing people, it came naturally after the first few centuries. "Don't worry, once she gets the hang of her new emotional equilibrium, she'll be fine."  
  
"Uhm, right. I... guess I better go analyze these readings," Sailor Mercury started getting very nervous. If she were to cross that boundary, then *she* would... oh dear. With fur and tail and claws. Or lace and a tight black uniform. Or bunny ears and high heels. Oh dear!  
  
Morgana watched the girl go running off and wondered if she'd faint from the force of that blush. Girls these days were so shy!  
  
With a gesture, Morgana formed a set of signs just outside the boundary. It wasn't quite true, of course, but some degree of warning seemed necessary.  
  
[No Trespassing. Persecuters Will Be Violated.]  
  
============  
  
Oh dear. oh my. whatever will happen to our hapless heroines?  
  
Well, in the meantime:  
  
OMAKE OMAKE OMAKE  
  
Rafael looked uncomfortable. "Actually, what I *intended* to do was have Ranma end up being raised by Kuan Yin."  
  
"Already been done," said Toltiir, idly waving a paw. "Observe."  
  
Rafael blinked. "The goddess of compassion and pacifism? Saddled with the wild horse?"  
  
-----  
  
WHAT IF KWANNON HAD RAISED RANMA?  
a "worse father than Genma" omake by Gregg Sharp  
  
-----  
  
Kuan Yin, aka Kwannon, alias a few similar names and identities, breathed a sigh of relief as her rebellious "son" was ready at long last to leave the nest.  
  
Years ago she had taken a tortured child under her protection. Not too long after that she had begun regretting it. At several points she had been ready to pull out her own hair as a result of a *very* rebellious boy whose natural inclinations had not included pacifism by any stretch of the imagination.  
  
After an event where even *her* patience had been exhausted, Kwannon had finally come up with an idea on how to impress on her young charge the basic philosophies of her nature. It hadn't quite worked, though Ranma had been a bit more subdued since his moment of Awareness. Even more so after his Ascension.  
  
The event in question had been the time Ranma had fallen into the Spring Of Tiresias after sneaking away in order to try and pick up some martial arts training from one of the other gods rather than study boring stuff like medicine. Having managed to change himself from an eight year old mortal boy into an eight year old girl had driven Ranma nearly into frothing at the mouth displays of temper until the gentle goddess Kwannon had found a way to change Ranma back. Though it only worked if Ranma was completely calm. If startled, angered, or otherwise moved out of his "icy calm" - boy-type Ranma became a girl.  
  
Thereafter, Ranma had learned to be less emotional. Quieter. More controlled. He still lapsed occasionally after that, but disliked becoming a girl enough that those occasions were rare.  
  
He'd become quite a good healer, familiar with a number of Chinese medical techiques. So much so that he'd become a god (second class, limited) of medicine.  
  
Now if only he'd get some of that show-off nature out of his system.  
  
-----  
  
This was boring, Cologne thought to herself, and THAT was why she usually did not attend the annual Tournament. It was the same thing every year. If only something *different* would happen.  
  
*BOOM!*  
  
As a bolt of lightning slammed down from a blue sky next to the first prize, Cologne raised an eyebrow.  
  
Coughing slightly, a boy walked out of the resulting cloud of smoke. "Yeesh. Maybe I should have chosen a different method of transport."  
  
Cologne's other eyebrow went up as she sensed the power radiating from this boy.  
  
"Hey you! What the heck are you doing?!" Ignoring the way the boy had formed out of a bolt of lightning, Shampoo pointed to where the edge of the feast was now on fire. "Look what you did to my prize!"  
  
"Oh?" The boy turned, saw the fire, and nodded. He couldn't leave things as they were, could he? "Don't worry, I can fix it!"  
  
Shampoo was ready to beat on this Outsider when it finally occurred to her that this boy was beginning to glow.   
  
"Dance and spin,  
O threads of life,  
Repair thy damaged ends,  
Grow strong again,  
And quickly mend,  
And free yourselves of strife!"  
  
Ranma nodded. He'd gotten stuck with the wording again but he thought he'd muddled through.  
  
The ears of corn becoming stalks of corn which took root and began spreading disabused him of that notion.  
  
Grass sprouted from dirt in a sudden flood of green that spread through the village. Tree seeds which had blown in from nearby orchards erupted into full growth in seconds before startled Amazon eyes. More plants likewise went from seeds or fruits to fully grown specimens of their breed within moments.  
  
Shampoo, enveloped by vines that had rushed over her in a wave, thought that all the flowers would look quite nice if they weren't tying her up like this. She had to fight against the strange calm and desire to dance that was already affecting a lot of the others around her. "STUPID OUTSIDER! LET ME GO!"  
  
As vines and plants continued to spread through the village and tie up or otherwise defeat various Amazons, Ranma said eight words that sent a chill through everyone who heard them. "Don't worry, I know how to fix this."  
  
-------  
  
When the Outsider had finally left, Cologne sat on a tree branch and smoked her pipe. Being over three hundred years old, she needed a break every so often. She also made a mental note not to complain about being bored again. Someone had obviously been listening.  
  
A form pushing its way through the thick field of corn revealed itself as a very disheveled looking Shampoo. She was joined quickly by Lotion, Perfume, Potion, Satin, Clover, Sugar, Spice, Tigar, Frost, Sash, and Weird Mao.  
  
Cologne let them wait below her for a few minutes. "And what do you want now with so much work to be done? We have to get all these trees out of the village, we have to harvest and store all these fruits and vegetables, we have to rebuild several homes still."  
  
"Excuse me, Elder," politely said Frost, the albino looking up at her briefly. "It occurred to me that this boy managed to defeat us in combat."  
  
Perfume and Lotion looked at each other and nodded. As they did everything together, sharing a husband wasn't so strange an idea. "The Outsider *was* a male, and *was* rather handsome."  
  
Cologne cleared her throat. "Are you suggesting that after all the trouble we had getting him to leave the village that one of you should give him the kiss of marriage and bring him back here?"  
  
"Well..." Sugar looked slightly embarassed.   
  
"Are you sure you're not trying to shirk your current workload?" Cologne looked at the guilty expressions over more than one face. "Get back to work. I'll consider your petition later as long as his entering our valley again is *not* something we have to deal with on a regular basis."  
  
There were some disappointed mutters but two of them looked hopeful.  
  
"And *after* we've cleaned up *this* mess," finished Cologne.  
  
-------  
  
The crowd of hentai was ready to attack.  
  
Their target, a young girl, prepared to throw herself into the group and beat them senseless. Err, make that 'beat them into severe pain' - if they had any sense to begin with they wouldn't be in this situation.  
  
*BOOM!*  
  
(cough hack) "Yup, I've *got* to come up with a better way of teleporting." Ranma waved some of the smoke away, then pulled out and began consulting a "Ningauble's Guide To Tokyo" as he tried to determine where he was.  
  
After a few minutes he realized that he wasn't being stared at so much as something at his feet. Glancing down he realized that he was standing *on* someone?! "Oh my gosh. I'm sorry, miss!"  
  
"...I don't want to play Romeo..." Akane mumbled, her eyes swirling.  
  
Ranma considered. He knew pressure points and Chinese medicine. All he had to do was tap here and there and voila!  
  
Akane realized some strange boy was touching her back and that she'd been pounded into the ground. "WHAT THE?! You did NOT defeat me!" She twisted away as this boy prepared to do something weird.  
  
"Yeah, I know. You were just lying in this crater by some amazing coincidence. Hey! Hold still! Uh oh." Ranma looked horrified as his precisely targetted pressure point strike which *should* have healed her sprained ankle hit an entirely different pressure point.  
  
Akane grabbed the young hunk in front of her, pulling him close into a passionate kiss. All of her inhibitions and inner passions came rushing to the forefront and she ground her body against the sexy stud. Yes, this was why she hadn't rebuked the whole defeating her thing. She *wanted* some guy to take control, to be able to force her into submission, and now that she had found someone, she was not going to let go.  
  
Ranma froze as he found someone else's tongue in his mouth and her hands roaming where public decorum indicated nice girls not do that even in privacy. When he could finally move again, Ranma did the natural thing. Which was to hit a temporary paralysis point, undo the effects of the earlier shiatsu strike, and teleport again. Boy, had *he* found the wrong place to be!  
  
Akane slowly got control of herself again, though if she ever found that boy again she'd... Well she wasn't quite sure if she'd finish what she started or she'd kill him.   
  
Idly flattening Tatewaki Kuno, Akane wondered which she really wanted to do.  
  
--------  
  
After causing so much mess on the mortal plane, it was quite natural for Ranma to be punished. Community service was not Ranma's favorite thing. The Goddess Relief Office even more so.  
  
Especially as that meant he had to be a she during this period. Bleah.  
  
Ranma brightened slightly. A call! "Goddess Relief Office. I'll be right there for a consultation!"  
  
-------  
  
Minako Aino sighed dejectedly. Her parents were out of town, she'd tried to order pizza, and instead she'd gotten some whacked out psychic hotline.   
  
*shoom!* "Not as impressive, but it'll have to do."  
  
*poof!* This the sound of a little white mooncat who now resembled a puffball with legs and poofy tail.  
  
The redheaded girl smiled at the startled blonde. "Hello. I am Ranma Saotome, god second class on probation, limited license, temporarily working for the goddess relief office. I am here to grant you a wish!"  
  
Minako blinked. "You're a goddess?"  
  
"Actually, this is just temporary. I'm really a guy." Ranma forced himself to calm and morphed back to male. "See? It's just a transformation because I work for the Goddess Relief Office, and they've got these rules, y'know?"  
  
Minako blinked repeatedly. A guy. A handsome guy. A handsome guy who was here to... "You're going to grant me a wish?!"  
  
Ranma nodded. "Oh yeah. I gotta go through the whole procedure. Minako Aino, alias Sailor V, aka Sailor Venus. You have been found worthy of being granted a wish. You only get *one* wish, however."  
  
"A wish?!" Minako repeated, looking over the girl that had turned into a real hunk.  
  
"Yes!" Ranma nodded. He wouldn't screw this one up! "It can be for nearly anything, however. You want great wealth, you can have it. You want to be a famous idol singer, you can do that too. You want a 'Venus Lovely Gatling Orbital X-Ray Laser Cannon' you can have that as well. Just remember - it's only one wish and once given you can't change it."  
  
Artemis began to recover. "Don't do it! It's a trick. Wish he'd just go away or something if you've got to!"  
  
"You could even wish that Artemis here had all his memories back or something," pointed out Ranma. "Whatever you like!"  
  
Minako tried not to get her hopes up even as Artemis began ranting about duties and responsibilities and not letting her guard down. "I could even get a boyfriend if I wanted?"  
  
"MINAKO!!" Artemis really began to get alarmed.  
  
Ranma looked at the girl and could see her uncertainties, her insecurity in her own appearance and appeal - fueled by her inability to get a boyfriend. After a moment he nodded. "Yeah. Though it's hard to believe a girl as cute as you couldn't get a boyfriend."  
  
Artemis cringed. The moment this boy called her cute, Minako got *that* look in her eyes. He had to stop her from doing something foolish. This *had* to be a trick of the Dark Kingdom.  
  
Minako grinned. The inevitable occurred. "I wish I had a cute boyfriend like you to be with me forever!"  
  
"Noooooooooooo!" Artemis didn't like this development at all.  
  
Strangely enough, neither would Luna.  
  
Minako on the other hand, after some initial misgivings, decided that she'd made the right wish after all.  
  
===========  
  
i'd actually planned this ending as one of the alternative beginnings to Retake, it was just that Retake took off before i could get this out.  
  
============== 


	16. Chapter 16: Back to the ball game

Chapter 16 Retake:  
  
Back to the ball game  
  
DISCLAIMER: Many characters originated elsewhere.  
  
------  
  
Greylle just *knew* something had happened. He wasn't sure what. He wasn't sure how. It wasn't just that he'd gotten ahold of the base and arranged for a practice team of marionettes to help him perfect his baseball skills.  
  
It also wasn't the fact that Shampoo and Ukyo both looked as if they had been in a fight and lost.  
  
What it was that was different was a little hard to pin down.  
  
Yuka - arguing quietly with Sayuri about something.  
  
Sayuri - giving that "I can't believe you're suggesting this" look to her friend.  
  
Akane - idly munching on a fish cookie while flipping through some notes.   
  
Ranma - with wet hair and a sullen expression that indicated why she was in girl form right now and that she was not happy about it.  
  
Hotaru - staring at him, then blushing and studying her book the moment he turned completely in her direction. Strange, but she'd been doing that a lot anyway.  
  
Hikaru Gosunkugi - not there. Strange but hardly alarming.  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke - pouring over some hentai magazine if their expressions were any indication.  
  
Rei Ayanami II - the marionette was quietly observing everyone and no doubt relaying it to her sister-units. Nothing unusual there.  
  
Nabiki - seen earlier - had come flying (literally) in to the schoolyard. She had recently become *very* fond of flying. Greylle supposed that in some way it represented personal freedom and control which would definitely appeal to Nabiki.  
  
Temporary Instructor Obe - just entered the room and taking roll call. They seemed to go through a lot of instructors here for some reason. The really weird ones were the only ones who stuck around.  
  
Shampoo - looked like she had been thrown in a blender set for "frappe". No body parts missing that could be seen, but it looked like some of her hair was missing and she had some nasty bruises.  
  
Ukyo - one of her eyes was blackened to the point where it had yellow highlights. Looked like a busted lip, and she'd been walking *very* carefully.  
  
Normal people - hmmm looked like the last ones that qualified as "normal" were Daru and Edu (the military otaku), Kiyoshi (the girl with the big... attitude), Kimiko (Daru's girlfriend and captain of the girl's martial arts soccer team), and Matsuhiro (captain of the kendo team following the unlamented removal of Tatewaki Kuno from the school.)  
  
It was frustrating but he couldn't tell *what* was going on that seemed so wrong.  
  
"We have some new students from China," announced the teacher, adjusting his glasses yet again. "So let's give a big 'ni hao' welcome to, uhm..."  
  
The door exploded inward. "We give own introductions!"  
  
Greylle had, in one lifetime, been in the Amazon village briefly. On seeing those entering, he almost considered fleeing. This was major not good.  
  
"Frost," said a calm voice from the pale girl studying the class briefly. She had much the same figure as Shampoo, but was thinner of limb - lacking the lean muscle of the martial artists.  
  
(Trip, thud, crash!) The girl tripped on nothing that anyone else could see and managed not only to fall down but legsweep Frost as she did so. "Azure."  
  
A pair of taller girls moved in. One was pale and light brown, the other a redhead. "Sugar. Spice."  
  
A girl who looked an awful lot like Sailor Moon stuck her head in the doorway before waving at them. "HiiiI! I'm Sash!" (slip crash thud) "oops"  
  
The transformed dragon watched carefully. Sugar and Spice weren't so bad. Frost certainly could be - she took the Icemaiden image seriously. Azure and Sash together were a disaster wrapped in a catastrophe.  
  
Well, at least he'd be able to get away from them later. They were already looking over Ranma. While Greylle had some sympathy for the poor boy, this was definitely a case where it was better to be watching the problem than an active participant.  
  
------  
  
Fess considered the odd requests and processed them. That was one task. There were others that needed consideration, but then he *was* an advanced AI and could do quite a lot at the same time.  
  
The American government was in tatters right now. Twenty four hours of undiluted truth from not only the politicians but the news media in the affected area was still having ripples through various strata of that society. The amount of threat they could produce right now was minor.  
  
The various other large governments were unsure of what had triggered it, but the effect was known - and it scared the living daylights out of them. Many would respond to a traditional military threat in kind, something like this that threatened the very roots of their power was another matter altogether. This was causing forces that might have been inclined to take advantage of the chaos in Washington to back away in case it was contagious.  
  
There were the odd requests from several of the Sailor Senshi to consider.  
  
Ami Mizuno had phoned in a request for a simulation of a potential situation. Not that she was seriously considering doing anything like that!  
  
Setsuna Meiou and Hotaru Tomoe had shown up late last night and used the beautifier. According to Meiou it was actually better than a day spa. Fess had been pleased to hear such a thing, as that *had* been a design consideration. The two had also come up with some other requests that Fess was considering whether or not to grant. Like Hotaru wanting a Krynn-style dragon saddle.  
  
The nanobath to restore Akane Tendo and Nabiki Tendo was almost ready. Some developments had put them ahead of schedule and as soon as school ended they could be turned back to normal human girls.  
  
Kumori Mizuno, pediatrician, had some interesting ideas that she had e-mailed Fess. That she now was attempting to fix her daughter up with a dragon was noted. Considering her stated desire to access Fess' technology, this was quite understandable. As were the doctor's ambivilent feelings on the relationship should she succeed.  
  
The Japanese government was apparently quite happy with the android dogs, and the dogs themselves were satisfied with their current positions. Hardly anyone knew any of the details outside a very few in strategic positions. So far the only complaint was from K-9-8 "Scotty" who complained that his current partner was a complete idiot.  
  
There was a problem in one of the factories orbitting Jupiter, apparently an especially high flare from Io had caused the robots building it to have a memory fault error. In compensating several sections had been built and the entire thing resembled a giant temple bell. Which wasn't too bad, except for the fabricating robot deciding to call itself Quasimodo and make a lot of jokes based on the bell theme. As long as Disney didn't find out, Fess wasn't going to tell them.  
  
Fifty Sakura Kinomoto/Avalon units, marionettes of sufficient complexity that they could actually stand up to an autopsy (unpleasant thought) unless it was a particularly technologically advanced city, were settling into various cities worldwide. There they could report back and carefully nudge things. Nothing overt, but sometimes having an understanding friend and a cheerful goodnatured girl around could brighten the lives of those around her. Fess currently planned to add another two thousand when the resources were available. The world could use all the bright and cheerful he could manage.  
  
Other androids and marionettes were developed and released, though these were single-unit releases. If one was particularly useful or successful he could make more. Some developed odd traits as a result of their programming - because each had a simulated personality and memory set depending on what her source was. Tifa Lockheart, for example, tended to daydream and liked sparring with other units - annoying the heck out of some of those units. The Aerith and Aeris units seemed to enjoy working in greenhouses and the like. Most of these were units in finishing stages because they had now become a low priority to some of the other tasks before Fess.  
  
--------  
  
The problem with non-terrestrial habitats meant to be used by humans for long periods of time was that humans as a rule were only able to survive in very carefully maintained conditions. Air, food, water - all needed to be within a narrow range of tolerances.  
  
Sewage wasn't a problem. It was all organic material anyway and could easily be used to produce arable soil when treated and added to the native materials.  
  
Power was supplied by microwave stations, rechargable batteries, and solar panel arrays. This met the major requirement of robots - which made them much more suitable to carving out a colony in environments that would kill humans within minutes.  
  
So robots paving the way for humans was logical.  
  
Most of the robots operating off of Earth were very nonhuman looking. Treads or wheels were more common than legs, and bipedal was even rarer a design feature.  
  
Some robots were of human appearance for all that they went outside in conditions that would have been very unpleasant for a human.  
  
Because Fess had originated them, and because most of Fess' knowledge of android manufacture came from downloaded details from Greylle, there were marionettes in space and on Mars and in a few other "interesting" locations. Which meant that there were cute female simulacra doing any number of odd tasks in odder places.  
  
Which caused some alarm when a Russian probe clicked on and sent a picture to the Russian Space Agency showing a number of young ladies constructing a tubeway that went right by one of their cameras. Followed by certain members of that agency ripping apart their datafeeds while they tried to find the hackers.  
  
That wasn't the only Martian project coming under scrutiny. Not by a long shot.  
  
Though the casino/spa built into the rim of Olympus Mons was far more gaudy, it was the picture of nubile girls in skintight costumes that got the attention of the various Russians and caused them to publicly declaim the obviously Swedish computer hackers. Well, that and nobody had a camera to see the construction on Olympus.  
  
Giant robots had been built, not to wage war against alien invaders, but to do really large construction projects.   
  
Vast ampitheatres and farm domes had been built, large rectenna farms to capture the microwave power beamed down from solar converters, caverns and lavatubes converted to habitats. The linking tubes were one of the last stages before everything could be made ready for a human influx.  
  
The wind continued to blow, the speed picking up, and one of the infrequent global sandstorms loomed.  
  
--------  
  
"Oh we can be cured now? That's nice." Akane tried to look cool and calm and collected.  
  
That her tail was lashing about and her ears had gone flat against her head indicated that she was not nearly so tranquil.  
  
Nabiki was a little more successful. "Oh. Well. I suppose I should go first." That she had no real enthusiasm was apparent to anyone who listened.  
  
"Is something wrong?" Rei Ayanami (number 12 in the marionette series not that anyone could tell from looking at her) asked of the two. Their behavior was not logical.  
  
A Sakura Kinomoto unit skated by the three, wondering if she should ask why the catlady was so upset.  
  
Nabiki let out a deep breath. Once she was restored to fully human she could start using that magic stuff she'd learned from the ghost of Lina Inverse. Raywing would take the place of antigrav generators. She could handle this. "Okay, I'm ready."  
  
Akane smiled but wondered at the sense of release. She didn't want to be a halfhuman catgirl did she? Of course not. But why be in a hurry to change back when she could do that any old time, right? Right!  
  
Noting that the tigergirl had relaxed suddenly, Rei #12 figured it was one of those human things. When she was exchanging data with the other Ayanami that evening maybe they could make sense of it. "This way then."  
  
The medical suite was familiar to both of them. Both had awakened here after very traumatic circumstances after all. Neither was going to be able to forget very easily and neither was exactly comfortable in a hospital setting.  
  
Nabiki looked over the displays and the keypad next to the nanotank. "What's this? I thought you'd just rebuild my body and I'd be gone."p  
  
"You'll still have to stay overnight as you are rebuilt," corrected Rei softly. "However, the keypad would be if you wanted to make additional changes to your genetic matrix or corrections as you went along. The unit is also able to respond to voice commands. The system is currently ready to go, just strip and get into the tank. Air will be supplied to you automatically and you'll be in a deep dreamless sleep until the process is complete."  
  
Nabiki got a glint in her eye. "I can make alterations?"  
  
Rei nodded once. "Yes, though it is suggested you not at this stage. I have to get to practice now."  
  
"'Practice'?" Akane asked, one ear twitching.  
  
"Yes," responded Ayanami. "There is baseball practice commencing in fifteen minutes at the Furinkan field. Greylle-sama needs a full team to practice against to improve his skills."  
  
Akane's ears went briefly flush against her hair, but then she relaxed again. "Hmmm. May have to check that out."  
  
Nabiki watched the two leave, then turned her attention to the keypad. "Change anything I want about my body, eh? Hmmmm."  
  
--------  
  
Akane blinked. There was Greylle Shard, practitioner of baseball style martial arts - stretching and doing warmups before practice.  
  
There was also a full field of Rei Ayanami units wearing identical baseball uniforms. The effect was slightly creepy. "How do you keep them seperate?"  
  
"Oh, that's fairly easy," responded the polymorphed dragon. He wasn't paying much attention to Akane. Some of the recent reports from Fess had been quite troubling. He hadn't been an American for over 70 years - roughly. Or at least one of him had. "They've all just given themselves nicknames so that it's easier for people to figure it out - though it's just for when they're playing baseball. Don't know where they got that idea from."  
  
Akane watched the baseball going at nearly transsonic velocities as it whipped from one identical member of the team to another. Could he really keep them seperate? "Okay, then who's on First?"  
  
"Yes, she is," agreed Greylle. He had a feeling he was forgetting something, but what?  
  
Akane blinked. "Who is?"  
  
"Yes," repeated Greylle.   
  
"Can't you tell me the name of your first baseman?"  
  
"Who."  
  
"THAT'S WHAT I'M ASKING!" Akane took a deep breath to steady herself. "What is the name of your first baseman?"  
  
"No, What is on Second. Who is on First."  
  
(Blink blink, slow burn.) "Look who is that you've got out there on First base."  
  
"Exactly." Greylle wondered what Akane was getting angry at *now*.   
  
"'Exactly'?" Akane closed her eyes and took another deep breath. "Okay. Forget First. Who is on Second Base?"  
  
"No. Who is on First Base. What is on Second."  
  
"ARRRGGHHHHHH! I said *forget* about First Base for now!" Akane wanted to pull hair out at this point. "What about your Third Baseman? What's HER name?"  
  
"Idunnaknow."  
  
Akane glared at the unusually obtuse American. "I thought you said you knew their names!"  
  
"i do. It's very easy to keep track of them." Greylle thought maybe Akane was getting frustrated trying to find differences. "See, Who is wearing her sleeves down a little and is chewing gum."  
  
"Who is?" Akane looked around. "Your First Baseman is. So what's her name?"  
  
"Like i said before, What is on second, Who is on first."  
  
Akane began to glow blue. "Okay. One last try at being reasonable. Imagine your pitcher throws a ball, you hit it to first. Who catches the ball."  
  
"Well, i'd hope so. She's pretty good from what i can see."  
  
"Who is?"  
  
"Yes," said Greylle, ready to point out that she had quite an arm on her.  
  
"ARRGGGHHHHHH!"   
  
-------  
  
Nabiki looked in on her body, seeing the cyborg parts removed one by one. "Ewwwww."  
  
"I've seen worse," said the astral form of Lina Inverse. "You ready?"  
  
"Yeah, teach me what you can of magic." Nabiki concentrated fully on the sorceress. It was less of a problem to deal with the lack of enhancements that her cyborg body had possessed if she could gain something in the doing of it. Becoming a powerful sorceress would help.  
  
Besides, she *really* didn't want to watch her body being reconstructed.  
  
------  
  
Only the corrections built into her catgirl body were keeping Akane from going completely ballistic. "WHY DON'T YOU TELL ME WHAT'S THE NAME OF THE FIRST BASEMAN?"  
  
"I did! Who!" Greylle was beginning to get a little frustrated himself. Unfortunately neither considered the translator might be having a little trouble with the current situation. Or that the Ayanami units had been watching an old Abbott & Costello flick.  
  
"THAT'S WHAT I'M ASKING!!!"  
  
"Ten, nine, eight," began Akane, finishing with "two, one. Okay. Suppose you go to the plate. Tomoe-san and Meiou-sensei are on First and Second."  
  
"Okay," said Greylle, picturing it. "Anyone on Third?"  
  
"Don't. Even. Start." Composing herself again, though her tail was making sharp jerking motions, Akane continued. "You hit the ball to Third. I don't know catches it, throws it to what, what to who, Triple Play."  
  
"Okay... Yeah, i could see it."  
  
Akane twitched. "You could see it."  
  
"Yeah, entirely possible. Your point is?"  
  
Akane twitched and blinked. Why was he making fun of her? "I don't know and I don't care!"  
  
"Pardon me?"  
  
"I said 'I don't care!'"  
  
Greylle thought for a moment. "Oh yeah, she's the Shortstop."  
  
"AAAARRGGGGGHHHHH!"  
  
-------  
  
Yuka had been a reformed otaku. Sayuri had never been such. Yuka had gotten back into it when she'd been presented the chance to realize childhood dreams. Sayuri had been dragged along for the ride. At the moment, literally.  
  
"Waaaaaaaaghhhh!" Sayuri was a lot more conformist than Yuka. OK, she'd bought some "hunk shots" from Nabiki of Ranma's guy form - but that wasn't that abnormal just not talked about.  
  
"Wahoooo!" Yuka liked certain elements of being a costumed defender of Tokyo. For one thing you got such neat toys! Like this jetbike, or rapid deployment vehicle if you preferred. Just look at how fast you could go, and how quickly you could take corners! "Isn't this neat, Sayuri?!"  
  
"AAAAAAAAAAA!" Feeling her cheeks pulling back from the g-forces they were going through, Sayuri couldn't hear her friend's comments. Currently running through her head was only the idea that they would end up smeared across the landscape.  
  
The jetbike, being fairly intelligent if not sentient, determined the direction that the operator wanted to go and speed and was making minor course adjustments all the time. It didn't particularly care but safety of operator and passenger were priorities. Especially as neither were wearing their hardsuits. So full speed and manueverability were cut down to what an unprotected human body could handle.  
  
"Yeeehaaaaa!"  
  
"AAAAAAAAAA!"  
  
People on the street looked up briefly as the little red streak shot overhead. Almost universally the attitude was "More weirdness in Nerima. How boring."  
  
-------  
  
At the top of the clock tower of Furinkan High School, Hiroshi sighed as he saw a jetbike pass overhead at high speed. "Hey, Dai. You remember when the weirdest thing to happen around here was Tatewaki Kuno?"  
  
Daisuke smacked his idiot friend upside the head. "Don't say his name, moron! You want to summon him?"  
  
"Sorry," said Hiroshi, rubbing his head.  
  
"Yeah. On the other hand, look at all the eye candy," exclaimed Daisuke. "The albino chicks are a bit cold, but I think I could warm one or two of 'em up. Then there's those new ones."  
  
"You don't mean those *little* girls, do you?" Hiroshi made a waist high gesture. "Them Sakura girls?"  
  
"Well, give em another six or ten and they'll be cute," agreed Daisuke. "Nah, what I mean are those over there."  
  
Hiroshi put his binoculars over his eyes and focussed in the suggested direction. "WHOA! Hubba hubba!"  
  
"That, my friend, is the promised land," said Daisuke.  
  
"Hey," said Hiroshi as a thought occurred to him. "Those're artificial people right? They're supposed to be experiencing human life, right? So we should take 'em to a love hotel and make sure they get the whole human experience!"  
  
Daisuke looked in wonder at his friend. "You know. Sometimes I wonder why I stick around with you, and then there's moments like now. Shall we?"  
  
-------  
  
Fess checked Nabiki and found unusual brain activity, but nothing life threatening.  
  
Hotaru and Setsuna calmly sitting with Kasumi and Cologne and having afternoon tea was less concerning.  
  
Akane storming into the complex and demanding she be turned back to human was more unusual, but he could certainly accomodate her. Before she changed her mind again, of course.  
  
Things were certainly progressing well and the riots in Washington DC were drawing to a close. The Mars developments were progressing well, and some of the other projects were likewise doing at least as positively as could be expected.  
  
Though it looked like something was going on with the IS Project.  
  
-------  
  
After the two boys had spoken their piece, the androids looked at each other.   
  
Tyra snapped her fingers. "I've got it. This is an attempted seduction!"  
  
"Oh?" "Yeah, you're right." "Wow." "That would explain a lot." The other androids all nodded, this making sense now.  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke beamed at each other. Man this was going to be easy.  
  
The IS (Idol-Supermodel) series had been built to a less high standard than the Sakura series, though they could bleed and stand up to medical exams to some extent. In their case, Fess had done scans on the internet and of major broadcast media and built nearly exact duplicates - figuring that if these units were deemed attractive they would be more acceptable. Oh, they had *some* changes from the originals. They had a letter-number designate instead of a last name. They had full skill packages of useful roles like Registered Nurse, Construction Engineer, Gourmet Chef, and Android Maintenence. They also could, even in the frailest seeming unit, dead-lift over 800 pounds, run at speeds in excess of 35mph, had a suite a very sensitive sensors, and would retain their current appearance with regular maintenence for another 200 years before they required a major overhaul. There were also minor cosmetic changes, enhancements designed to increase their attractiveness based on various polls and trends as well as not duplicate too closely living humans who could be awfully funny about such things.  
  
Their purpose however, was to act as go-betweens. While radio or telephone or computer-to-computer was more efficient, humans tended to require face-to-face meetings. Hence this experiment.  
  
"So what would be an appropriate response in this situation?" Tyra BAN100 asked her sisters.  
  
"In roughly 52% of the references culled from shojo manga, we should be offended by such a blatant come-on. Followed by us ganging up on them and thrashing them severely - usually with large blunt trauma instruments," a member of the Swedish Bikini Team declared. "As this is the majority of that media, this is what we should do."  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke's smiles fell and they slowly began inching away.  
  
"In the shonen database," indicated Megumi HAYA102, "the spread is different. The use of mallets and other blunt instruments is overshadowed by the Angry Huff."  
  
"That is not the conclusion I have come to," disagreed Kotono MITSU104. "I also show blunt trauma instruments, however this is for blantant and *undesired* approaches."  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke were now ready to flee at high speeds. There was a difference between being crazy and stupid.  
  
Michie TOMI109 twirled a baseball bad in her hands. "What would be considered a suitable application of force?"  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke broke and ran.  
  
Linda CAR125 held her hand up. "What about *desired* approaches?"  
  
Somehow the mallet looked at home in the tiny hands of Aya HISA110. "Are we sure we'd want to put this experience in our databases? They look kind of unsavory to me."  
  
"Interesting thought. We should interface to determine what parameters are deemed acceptable for such activities as well as assemble a database of acceptable behavior and responses." Sandra BUL151 thought Aya might be on to something.  
  
Heather LOCK199 disagreed. "I think we should spend more time observing our originals."  
  
"You just want to watch that cop show," responded Kirsten DUN203. "Maybe we should just get back to working on the Arcadia. I wanted to finish the South Outer Ring Environmental Monitors today."  
  
"You *always* want to get back to the construction of the Arcadia," Yvonne CRA212 criticized. That she looked like her original had back in the 1960s, including a Batgirl suit, might have stood out elsewhere. In this crowd, however, most of those looking would have been reduced to mute staring by the time she shouldered her way forward. "Who's going to help me out with the Guardian Force mobile suits? I've been promised assistance for three days now!"  
  
Denise RIC111 pondered. "Well, I was considering hunting down those two and seeing if they actually had data worth sharing. Since they aren't here, I think I'll help you out instead."  
  
"Do you think they actually meant to proposition us as a group?" Tyra BAN100 asked the crowd.  
  
"Two guys, three hundred girls?" Kikuko INO113 shook her head. "They didn't look *that* dumb."  
  
-------  
  
Akane sat down in the nutrient bath, knowing that she was surrounded by itsy bitsy machines that would turn her back into a human. After Greylle had teased and humiliated her, she was ready for things to get back to normal. At least she was alone now.  
  
Sort of.  
  
"Why is he like that, anyway?"  
  
"Why is who like what, Miss Tendo?"  
  
Akane jumped, heart racing, before she realized it was just Fess. "That gaijin Greylle!"  
  
"What happened, Miss Tendo?"  
  
"He was being a JERK!" Akane responded.  
  
"Oh? I suppose he is that sometimes," agreed Fess.  
  
"What the hell was he thinking with that stupid joke?!" Akane gritted her teeth as she tried not to smash anything.  
  
"Which joke was that?"  
  
Akane mumbled something about baseball naming conventions.  
  
"I was wondering about that sort of thing myself."  
  
"Eeek," eeked Akane who was wearing very little in the slowly filling tank.  
  
Cologne grinned briefly. "I was wondering, what other lives he's referenced that make him so reluctant to risk emotional closeness."  
  
"Some of you might want to leave the room," suggested Fess. "This sample is pretty dark."  
  
None of them, even Hotaru, made a move for the door as the lights dimmed and the a holographic projection began.  
  
"Who's the young man with the odd tattoos on his forehead?" Cologne asked, though suspecting the answer.  
  
"This is Greylle, fairly early on. He has just been assigned to a world..."  
  
------  
  
Grey held out the tricorder and began scanning. "Hey, Central. What's the mission? Looks like pretty typical Azabu Juuban in Tokyo circa 1992."  
  
A communication device flickered lights in response. "Unknown. This timeline was affected by the Knights Of The True Continuua using a dimensional tunnel to shift something into this universe 32 minutes ago their time. It's March 15, 1993."  
  
"The ides of March, eh? Any other details you can give me?" Grey looked about with the scanner continuing to bleep at him.  
  
"Sailor Moon universe. In this particular one, the pre-intervention difference is that Tuxedo Mask starts gravitating to Sailor Mars and the two date for a much longer period."  
  
Ignoring the tricorder, Grey straightened. "I feel it. Something's about to happen. I..."  
  
The wind rose, a sudden gust that passed by him and caused his defenses to flare bright momentarily in response.  
  
The effects on the surroundings were rather more intense. Crashes and screams and howls followed in the wake of the wind.  
  
"Oh... those..." Grey began looking around him, his face a mask of horror.  
  
"What is it?" The communicator sounded desperate. "Readings aren't making any sense."  
  
"They created a crossover element, they brought in the aliens. DAMN THEM! This is now a 'Wind Called Amnesia' crossover timeline." Grey winced and held his head. "Damn! Being an empath is really not good at times."  
  
"What was that? 'Amnesia'?"  
  
Grey tried to focus under the psychic barrage caused by all the pain, fear, and death. "Short form. Aliens decide humans are too dangerous. They unleash a quantum phase weapon - the Amnesia Wind. It spreads across the planet and wipes out memories in its path - not just personal memories but *everything*. No language skills, no civilization, just a bunch of hairless apes. Ah! That must have been a jetliner! I'm heading towards the site."  
  
"No, don't bother," the commlink said. "We'll arrange for your pickup. You can't do anything anyway."  
  
Grey tossed the commlink aside and started running.  
  
-------  
  
Even Cologne, who had seen a lot of pain and suffering in her lifetime, stared in horror as the images continued. Setsuna Meiou, no stranger to carnage and bloodshed, winced and looked away.  
  
The astral body of Nabiki watched and would have turned pale if she weren't as pale (and transparent) as it was possible to get already.  
  
"This is one of his more painful memories," said Fess, "however it is also pivotal to how he develops later on."  
  
Kasumi couldn't watch anymore and covered her eyes. That didn't help much as some of the images had seared themselves into her imagination. Akane fell asleep in her nanotank.  
  
Uncharacteristically perhaps, Hotaru was actually snarling. "Tell me these aliens got their comeuppance."  
  
"At this point Greylle lacked the ability to find, much less fight, these aliens. Instead he concentrated on saving what lives he could. This didn't work out as well as he could have hoped."  
  
The flames spread out from several impact points. Not only the jetliner but from cars whose operators suddenly didn't even know what a car was much less how to operate them. Fess sped things up in the playback, and soon they could see most of Tokyo engulfed as gas mains erupted and fire overwhelmed what few automated systems existed. The firemen, of course, were fighting over those few bits of food that could be found without somehow puzzling out the opening of cabinets or other food storage areas.  
  
Not able to save everyone, they saw the figure of Greylle hunt down and find a few specific individuals who fought like animals but were eventually tied up and carried off for their own safety.  
  
"How many died?" Cologne asked when she could.  
  
"Worldwide within the first day - over one billion. By the end of the first week over four billion dead. Automated systems do not receive required passcodes and missiles are launched which further reduce the population." Fess hesitated. "Based on these results the aliens decide humanity is too inherently uncivilized and are preparing to completely destroy the planet seven months after their initial attack."  
  
"They call US uncivilized?! After THAT?!" Cologne looked again to see the image was of a small villa overlooking a burned out city. "How did this affect the boy?"  
  
Fess slowed the replay to a more normal replay level. "He was still fairly new to the whole hero-role, and prior to this had lacked assertiveness and much drive. During this he learned reliance and several skills such as childrearing. This takes place six months and a week later."  
  
------  
  
"Pa pa?"  
  
"Good girl, Ami," Greylle said, patting the girl on the head and trying to avoid getting latched onto when she squealed happily and tried to grab.  
  
"What the blazes is going on here?!"  
  
Ami hissed and drew back.  
  
"I take it you're from the Office?" Greylle asked someone.  
  
------  
  
"How come we can't see this other person? He's all mosaiced out!" Setsuna inquired.  
  
"He bears several powerful spells to defeat attempts to scry him." Fess hesitated to say more, then decided it wasn't necessary anyway.  
  
------  
  
Greylle apparently saw something to confirm that. "Okay. You're familiar with the basic setup. Everyone's memories were wiped clean. Not suppressed - erased. i've got the Sailor Senshi here where i've been teaching them the basics, just as if they were babies in teenage bodies."  
  
"Yeah. Okay, I get it. You're going to eventually get them to the point where they can say their activation phrases and see if the transformation will either revert them or at least give them their Silver Millenium identities back." The mosaic moved, and the nearly feral Ami drew back away from him. In this world, strangers were usually hostile and prone to attack anything that moves. The savage had survived where others could not. "Only one at a time, huh? The rest are caged?"  
  
"Yeah, i cleaned out some kennels for large dogs. Dogs, cats, other animals weren't affected. The dogs now wander the outer area. Feed 'em for a few weeks and they get used to you. The girls are there because they're prone to attack each other over food or toys and stuff." Greylle began brushing Ami's hair, causing her to calm some.  
  
"Well, you're off the case. Your office wants you back, now. Besides, the aliens are getting ready to nuke the place - you've run out of time."  
  
Greylle sighed and leaned back. "You'll take care of them? i really don't feel right abandoning them."  
  
"No problem!" The blur made a sweeping gesture with his arm and Ami blinked and straightened.  
  
"Oh. I... remember?!" Ami staggered, clutching her head.   
  
"They weren't erased?!" Greylle was obviously shocked at the sudden change.  
  
"No, they were erased, I just have access to powerful spells and am familiar with some of the basics. Giving them language skills and basic memories from the series was easy. There's still gaps but at least they'll be able to fight back. As for the aliens, I've got something to do about *them*!"  
  
*SLAP!*  
  
Greylle blinked, especially as Ami had just slapped him. Six months getting her to the point where she could feed herself, say a few simple words, and developing a simple parent-child bond. Obviously she'd just remembered being bathed and having her diapers changed regularly. He never had been able to get them potty trained. Ah, the joys of raising children. Not.  
  
"It would seem that i'm not needed after all." Greylle shook himself, the good of his "children" was really all that mattered. "Do i know you? i think i owe you one."  
  
"Not yet. Time travel's involved. You get around a lot you know."  
  
Greylle winced. "So my future, your past, we meet. Got you. Time travel always did give me headaches."  
  
---------  
  
Setsuna nodded. Definitely a sensible sentiment.   
  
"So, he came out of this encounter changed?" Cologne could see it. He'd definitely cared deeply for those girls, had clearly doted on them like a proud parent, then been rejected. Ah well, Japanese girls were like that. Always holding out for a better deal, leaving their husband/boyfriend when things got rough, etc. (Of course, Cologne being Chinese couldn't be slightly prejudiced, could she? No, of course not.)  
  
"Oh yes. Prior to this visiting other worlds had been a sort of game. He'd allowed himself to be pushed by circumstance and hadn't spent nearly so much time studying. More like coping and just handling day-to-day existence. After this he studied with Hephaestus the arts of magic and technology."  
  
Cologne blinked, thinking of Greek gods. "Hephaestus?"  
  
"Yes," agreed Fess.  
  
Setsuna smiled, thinking of an artificier in the Silver Millenium of the same name. Ah, a Silver Millenium connection - which made associating with the dragon far more acceptable.  
  
Hotaru dabbed at her eyes. "Why did she slap him?"  
  
"Because he'd been changing her diapers and giving her baths for six months," Fess responded. "Taking a lot of cold showers himself during that time period. According to the notes it wasn't always easy to convince one or more of them that he was not trying to initiate a mating and there *are* apparently some instinctual behavior patterns hard wired into the brain."  
  
"He's crossed paths with them all before, and since." Setsuna said, fitting pieces together.  
  
"Yes," agreed Fess. "Sometimes he's been the mascot, sometimes the boyfriend, twice a husband, and more often a parental role. Mainly depending on what he remembers and how old he is when your paths have crossed."  
  
Setsuna nodded. This bore looking into.   
  
Hotaru was less pleased herself but then she'd known part of this before. How to get her sempai to take her seriously?  
  
Cologne wondered how to explain this to those other Amazons. And where the heck were they anyway?  
  
--------  
  
Ranma moved back into position. Yeah, he was the best. At least as far as human opponents went. Scratch another loudmouth challenger.  
  
Sash slowly picked herself up. "You're very good."  
  
Ranma nodded. Yup.  
  
Sash smiled and kissed the boy who had just defeated her.   
  
Ranma froze, then slowly pulled away. "Uhm, you're not from some Amazon Village, are you?"  
  
"Yes. You know of the Joketsuzoku?" Sash blinked at her new husband.  
  
"Gee, look at the time, gotta run!" Ranma turned and began a high speed retreat. *WHAM!*  
  
Sash had been wearing tight jeans and a "Totoro" t-shirt. This girl was actually dressed like a Chinese Amazon. "oooo."  
  
"Hey, Azure. That's *my* boyfriend."  
  
Azure looked up, saw the boy who'd knocked her over. "Hey! Cute! You new in town." (Azure's skill with Japanese was fairly pathetic.)  
  
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" There was a dust trail leading off in the distance.   
  
"First come, first wife," suggested Azure.  
  
"I'm not gonna lose," said Sash, who had learned Japanese from reading large numbers of manga.  
  
"Three, two... GO!" Azure started running.  
  
Sash growled and gave pursuit.  
  
------  
  
Frost stood atop a spire. "You will not win."  
  
Sugar and Spice posed to either side. "Against us you cannot hope to succeed."  
  
Ryouga wondered why these girls had interrupted his martial arts practice and how was he going to get out of this mess.  
  
Frost made an arcane gesture, her long nails tracing a pattern that glimmered in the air. "I don't recall asking for assistance here."  
  
Sugar and Spice glared at Frost. "We here first!"  
  
As the three began a two-way battle, Ryouga was rarely so glad to immediately get lost.  
  
------  
  
Greylle wiped sweat away as he pondered the choice of which pitch to pitch.  
  
The various Rei Ayanami had stated the desire to go to Karaoke Palace later if they won.  
  
With nine Rei Ayanami on one side, he'd had to request assistance himself. He might be a dragon, but you needed nine players at least to play baseball.  
  
The game had drawn a crowd. Which was to be expected one would suppose. Nine identical fairly cute albino girls on one side, the other side being composed of the gaijin baseball martial artist and a likewise strange team.  
  
Ukyo and Shampoo had begged off. Hiroshi and Daisuke would be more of a liability than a help. Yuka and Sayuri testing the new Motoslave/jetbike. Most people he thought of were either nowhere to be found or busy or unsuitable. Hardly anyone else was available who was human. Quite a few people who were not human were also busy.  
  
So the team he had assembled was composed of odds and ends and people who were not precisely human.  
  
Greylle was the pitcher, of course. That was one thing he'd needed to practice after all.  
  
Sakura Kinomoto, Left Outfield. Who had a lot of enthusiasm but no talent. Even if she *was* a synthoid replica, her pitching and catching skills were horrible. Cute and perky could only go so far. This particular one was wearing the pink dress, cat ears, and cat tail outfit.  
  
Tigar was a *lot* better and working third base. Tigar was Sugar's younger half-sister. Tigar's father had been a mountain lion who had fallen in Spring Of Drowned Man. She was the resident catgirl of the Nichieju, a twelve year old nonconformist who had immediately formed friendships with practically everyone she'd met so far. There was just something about a mischievous cute rascal of a catgirl that may not have endeared her to the Amazon Elders but practically had her developing a fanclub already.  
  
Playing catcher was one of the Terminator units. Who was sick and tired of people calling him "Arnold" and asking him for an autograph.  
  
The Shortstop position had been filled by one of the Catgirl units - Cheetah. That she resembled (other than fur, ears, tail, coloration) Makoto Kino was entirely coincidental. Right?  
  
Second Base was being played by someone with an uncanny resemblence to Doctor Lorelei from Sabre Marionette J. This was actually Lorelei, aka Siryn, a marionette that Greylle had built back when he was Ginseng. She didn't know anything about the game but was willing to try.  
  
First Base was the current responsibility of another Catgirl unit - who resembled Nuku Nuku except that this one had cat ears and a tail. She *was* quite skilled at this and quite obviously enjoying herself from the way she was bouncing around.  
  
The Centerfield position was "manned" by someone who looked a lot like Madoka Ayukawa from "Orange Road" but was actually another marionette. She had just experimented with bubble gum and was still trying to find a way of getting the sticky substance off her face without removing the glove on her left hand.  
  
Last was Right Outfield. The Tomoyo unit was about the same size as one of the Kinomoto units, but then her construction had come out of a conversation wherein he'd said that if they had a Card Captor Sakura Kinnomoto around, why didn't they have the rest? Of course that was what had started Fess on this theme park concept.  
  
The game itself was going... strangely?  
  
Rei would always adapt strategies and play to win in a logical straightforward manner. As Doctor Lorelei, Sakura, and Tomoyo were all pretty horrible at this game - whenever Rei got a hit she was aiming to one of those players.  
  
Everyone else (including Madoka when she finally got the bubblegum off her face and then off her hands) was at least passable.  
  
If they'd been available, Greylle would have recruited the Senshi. Nine planets, nine players, it *could* have worked. Maybe he ought to have that Catgirl Senshi Team developed.   
  
------  
  
While Greylle attempted to play ball against a team of Rei Ayanami, and a few girls were watching a tale of horror, Fess was busy with something else.  
  
Namely: Anime-land.  
  
Getting permission from various studios and artists had been relatively easy. Cut them in on profits, give them a "studio store" they didn't have to pay rent on, and free admittance passes. Some still refused. Some did not.  
  
So there was a floating island under construction. Not only did it draw power from a variety of sources, it was a completely self-contained cityscape if need arose. With theme hotels, amusement rides, monorails, and a variety of other features.  
  
All the marionettes who resembled various anime characters could walk around and do their business and act "in character" for the most part, and amuse the heck out of visitors.  
  
You could see Inspector Zenigata chasing Arsene Lupin III over the rooftops over here. Discuss Tao and duty with Kenshiro from "Hokuto No Ken" or Himura Kenshin from "Ruroni Kenshin." Get caught up in a "Urusei Yatsura" chase scene or see what was going on with Doraemon. Gegege No Kitaro's cast could be found at one of the virtual haunted houses, and Team Gatchaman could work security with the Dirty Pair.  
  
Between marionettes, robots, and virtual reality rides there was actually quite a lot that could be done. The theme park could generate revenue which would be real within the currency standards and tracking of this world. It could also provide manufacturing and distribution areas to replace Fess' already overwhelmed space limitations.  
  
Oh, and there were catgirls, of course. Tour guides and repairers and operators and drivers. Who happened to be catgirls of various breeds and colors and stripes. A linked theme and something exotic but largely nonthreatening.   
  
Squaresoft was quite interested in the plans for a Chocobo Farm and Chocobo rides through the park. Uhm, interested might be an understatement actually. Same with those folk over at Gainax. Some serious "otaku" though polite robots would never suggest that in public.  
  
Of course, some of those series that already had been built were either years away from being written or didn't exist in this universe at all. As there were three non-public access layers, they could "lay low" until later.  
  
A floating city that never slept. A theme park where any anime fan could interact with his or her favorite characters. A place where material goods of incredibly high manufacturing standards could be produced. Not simple tourist knockout items, it was a matter of pride from the simplest ashcan-bot to the manufacturing systems themeselves to put out Quality with a capital Q and maybe even a couple of exclamation points besides!  
  
The only problem so far was that group of industrial Chinese spies disguised as fishermen whose boat had "suddenly and mysteriously" lost power and landed. Then attempted to EM pulse the marionettes on duty and steal them on their "suddenly and mysteriously" repaired vessel. The Chinese were stating that they were just a fishing vessel and were making all sorts of threatening statements.  
  
The question to Fess had been what to do about it.  
  
Fess thought long and hard about it (1 minute 48 seconds) and finally decided on a course of action that would cause the minimum longterm problems out of all of those considered.  
  
--------  
  
Ken Olson, founder of Digital Equipment Corporation, said in 1977: "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."  
  
In 1878 a noted Oxford professor named Erasmus Wilson wrote: "When the Paris Exhibition closes, electric light will close with it and no more will be heard of it."  
  
Charlie Chaplin in 1918 explained that "The cinema is little more than a fad. What audiences really want to see is flesh and blood on the stage."  
  
The Decca Recording Company in 1962 rejected a band because "we don't like their sound and guitar music is on the way out." The Beatles eventually signed with another company.  
  
A respected movie critic in 1938 wrote about this new film: "That the character Snow White is a failure in every way is indisputable. Another Snow White will sound the Disney death-knell."  
  
All of which are simply proof that people can be quite clever, industrious, rational, beings. Just not all the people, and certainly not all the time.   
  
Such as was occurring in the United States as events played out in Japan.  
  
Twenty fours of absolute compulsory truthful disclosure was having repercussions beyond the area of effect: Washington DC.  
  
The fires and rioting had died down, not only in that city but in capitol cities where those affected had offices. Impeachment proceedings were going on without hint of slowing down even if the calls for public execution or lynching were gradually tapering off.   
  
All of which was perfectly understandable.   
  
However, this was the United States of America. Where the news media lived for the sound byte. Where a lawyer in Peoria AZ threatened to dig up a teacher's past and/or manufacture scandals and/or sue the school if a girl who blew off a test wasn't allowed to retake it. (Yes, this really happened.) Where someone could get million dollar settlements because she spilled coffee on herself and the coffee was hot.   
  
Those lawyers not directly affected were becoming extremely wealthy because many statements had been made publicly and on the record. Hence a dearth of lawsuits directed towards those who had made those statements.  
  
There was also a windfall for those lawyers working for those who had been affected. Trying to get their clients protection from the "sudden mass temporary insanity" lined their pockets. So did attempts at destroying or suppressing all those records.  
  
These were normal too relatively. The unwise part was that a large number of these lawyers were attempting to find and sue the person or entity responsible for these events. As this had all the hallmarks of some sort of spell, the lawyers had revived the old tradition of the "witch hunt" and were serving subpeonas to every group who might have had some minor part in all this.  
  
Which was at the very least annoying to those groups. Most countered by the same means: lawsuits. A few pointed out how ridiculous the entire concept was and that the prosecution would have to prove that not only was magic possible, but that its use could be regulated by the Federal government, or even that laws against bespelling people weren't on the books.  
  
All of which might have qualified as stupid. There was however one individual about to transcend stupid. Which was unusual because normally a deep agent had to be quite clever.  
  
This individual decided to connect the dots, figuring out from little details that the alien technology mentioned in one series of reports might well be real. If it were real it might somehow be responsible for the disaster. All fairly clever so far. The first act of blatant stupidity was reporting this to her superiors. The immediate result of which was that their agent was engaging in elicit narcotics and had become a liability.  
  
Not having a calm rational explanation for what had happened to the Americans, most everyone else was ignoring it. Like you could trust the US press anyway.  
  
Which was when the agent decided to leap from stupid move to even worse. She decided to go investigate this alien site herself and bring it back for her own country. While this meant she wouldn't be at her apartment when the assassin showed up, it carried its own problems.  
  
-------  
  
Probe AT-1 had exited hyperspace and sped through the system at a pretty good clip before digesting its findings and preparing for the Earthbound journey to report.  
  
The star system was of a solitary yellow dwarf sun. Seven planets, one asteroid belt. The planets were composed of three gas giants, two rocks, one large planet with a weak atmosphere, and one terrestrial planet.  
  
The terrestrial finding caused the probe's curiosity to be aroused and it altered course for a closer look.  
  
A world of water. Two large continents which looked to have just (in geological terms of time) seperated. Between them a shallow freshwater ocean. Around them was saltwater.  
  
Now excited in an electronic fashion, AT-1 slipped into an orbit.  
  
No sentient life, and the development of this world was roughly equivelant to Earth's Mesozoic era. Flowering plants had begun to develop? Only in one tiny area, but still quite interesting.  
  
AT-1 sped from orbit towards home. It was not equipped to further explore this world, but it *was* intrigued. Another probe, one with lander capabilities and shorter range scanners, would have to be sent.  
  
It was an exciting time to be a robot.  
  
--------  
  
He had studied, he knew the spell by heart, and had studied his target. As she came by, he leapt out.  
  
Unconcerned blue eyes blinked at him. "You want something?"  
  
Higari (Gari) Katsumatsu cast the spell, everything he had going into the transformation that would turn this young girl into his panting brainless loveslave. It was the most powerful enslavement spell he could find, guaranteed to blow *her* mind. A cram school student had no chance. Seeing the sparkle surrounding the target, he grinned and dropped his pants. "You know what to do."  
  
The girl seemed momentarily confused, then shrugged and kicked. Hard.  
  
Gari dropped, screaming and clutching his privates.  
  
Sabre Marionette Usagi stepped over the guy and wondered why all the weirdoes came after her.  
  
---------  
  
Greylle sweated heavily from the effort of keeping up all the pitching at the pace he'd developed.  
  
The Rei Ayanami clones were *good*. They initially were unpracticed but they adapted well.  
  
Watching Doctor Lorelei attempting to play had been painful at best.  
  
Sakura was cute and enthusiastic and absolutely pathetic.  
  
Tomoyo/Madison was even worse.  
  
Madoka had experienced problems with her extensor myomers in the shoulder area and had been told to return for servicing. Her replacement, an Elfgirl unit (because the idea of pointy eared Science Officers had been voted a necessary function) named Lute, spent a lot of time trying to talk to the grass and trees and missing out on the game.  
  
Tigar had started out strong but had begun losing attention on the whole thing after the first inning and had gone off to chase a butterfly by the third. Third Base was now being handled by an android replica of Honey Kisaragi. Who did *not* have a Baseball Honey she could turn into.  
  
One of the things about baseball that endeared it to the Japanese was that it was a team sport. A single player, no matter how good, could not win a game on his own.  
  
What he needed was a strategy. Something to overcome the advantage of the other team's learning curve and ability to synchronize as a unit. Unfortunately, he still hadn't come up with anything.  
  
His "Double Curve" pitch was ineffective against any of the Rei. The "Dragon Ascension Pitch" would get by them, but the entire idea of him practicing was to practice *all* his moves - not just one. Likewise, he could hit the majority of pitches they sent his way.  
  
The other members of his team were...  
  
*WHAM!*   
  
The ball that had deftly missed Sakura's outstretched hands to fall between them and impact directly on the munchkin's face slowly rolled off and hit the ground. Sakura continued to stand like that until she teetered over.  
  
The Tomoyo/Madison unit reacted in a predictable manner, rushing up and carrying off her friend while calling for a medical bot.  
  
Sighing deeply, Greylle signalled for a time out while he tried to replace the latest two dropouts.  
  
"Beep boop brreep bleep!"  
  
"R2, who's available to replace Tomoyo and Sakura?"  
  
"Voop voop breet bleep!"  
  
"And exactly how would you play baseball without any hands."  
  
"veeeeeeeeee. Boop boop bleep breee."  
  
Greylle sighed. Why some of these marionettes were even built was beyond him. There were literally hundreds of robots and androids built though, so you'd think that *some* wouldn't be busy and could stop by. "Does she have any baseball database loaded?"  
  
"vreep. whoop whoop buzzz bing."  
  
"Okay. Tifa is a Fighting marionette. Aerith is a Nurse. Let's go with Tifa for Left Outfield, Aerith for Right."  
  
"Yuffie just stole third base," yelled a voice across the field.  
  
Greylle sighed and watched as the kunoichi ran off with the bag. "Maybe we should just quit while we're ahead?"  
  
"Boop beep vreet buzz?"  
  
"Figure of speech, R2."  
  
--------  
  
Alarm bells or sirens would have disturbed the quiet needed for many patients. Therefore flashing red lights at various stations came on instead.  
  
"Patient 241812 has escaped," said the LCD readout under the light.  
  
Happy Valley Sanitarium was a quiet place where tangled nerves could be soothed. Alarm bells and rushing guards were where the patients couldn't see or hear them.  
  
"Wasn't he sedated, handcuffed, and in a cell?" One of the guards asked.  
  
"Being given a sponge bath, and was up for psych eval later in the day," explained one of the other guards.  
  
The first guard flipped through the chart. "Oh great. Another martial artist gone bad. 'Unarmed and Dangerous' - patient suffers from delusional obsessive disorder. Samurai complex."  
  
"Got the extrastrength darts in the trank gun," said the second guard. "Maybe we should use the dogs."  
  
"Let's see, Fluffy has the colic, that leaves Demon, Akira, and Wulfgard," said Guard #1.  
  
"Let's go then. I read this guy's profile, and his elevator not only doesn't reach the top floors - he's missing a few buttons."  
  
--------  
  
Cologne waited until evening, gathered the information, then pondered what to do about it.  
  
Frost, Sugar and Spice - all pursuing Ryouga Hibiki.  
  
Sash and Azure were after Ranma. As were Shampoo and Ukyo Kuonji and Akane Tendo. Though this last was debatable - especially by Akane Tendo. It was a pity, but all of the Amazons she'd requested come to pair off with the dragon had reverted to type and were now chasing after martial artists.  
  
Akane Tendo and Nabiki Tendo were in the process of being returned to human. Nabiki Tendo wasn't pursuing anyone as near as Cologne could tell.  
  
Nobody was physically chasing after the dragon prince Greylle. Cologne thought that a few of those androids seemed to linger a little longer than necessary around him. The only one that Cologne *knew* with absolute certainty that was interested was that young girl - Hotaru.  
  
Cologne thought that Akane Tendo had been after the dragon-boy, but apparently they had had a "falling out."   
  
The Amazon Elder noted some unusual behavior from some crows that was sufficient to distract her from the love tangles (triangles was not a sufficiently descriptive term). Two crows collided in midair, and fell to the ground. "This doesn't bode well at all."   
  
--------  
  
A rock covered with Shinto wards was shattered by lightning.  
  
A storage shed was broken into, and a single bokken removed.  
  
Greylle's team lost, 14 to 20. The Ayanami Angels main strategy was to throw pitches outside the strike zone to Greylle, causing him to Walk. There he could languish at First Base while the rest of his team fell apart.  
  
A deep cover operative of the Mexican government under the guise of being an American agent fell asleep on her flight to Japan.  
  
Several Chinese agents scoffed at the obvious lies from the monitors and windows, forced the door open, and discovered that the obvious lie that their prison cell was on Amalthea - a small moon of Jupiter - was actually not a lie at all. Fortunately, emergency bulkheads closed to keep the farm from losing too much atmosphere and a small repair-bot was dispatched to fix the door.  
  
Mikado Sanzennin spotted a *very* pretty girl who acted as if she couldn't be bothered with him and decided that the very next pair of lips he would claim would be that of this Hotaru Tomoe.  
  
The hentai sorcery club decided the challenge had been given. They carefully chose their next target to be someone who perfectly fit their target criteria. She was popular. She was cute. No guy had ever been able to get very far with her. Sure, she had some bad habits, and it might be that she had a reputation, but she was cute and popular and would soon be fluffing their pillows! (insert evil if a bit nerdy and clueless laughter.)  
  
A pair of new foreign exchange students registered at Juuban Junior High named Alan and Ann heard about this alien prince of a planet of dragons over in Furinkan and wondered if maybe they should choose a planet that didn't get this sort of traffic.  
  
A student named Keitaro Urashima found out his grandmother had gone off to motorcycle across America and he had just been put in charge of a female dorm known as Hinata House. Unfortunately, other than one of the tenants being a marionette ninja named Paiway, this had nothing to do with the rest of the story and therefore is only worth a casual mention. "Pai-check!"  
  
Akane's eyes snapped open in her nanobath. A connection was made. Could Greylle's puzzlement while making fun of her have been due to a translation error? Did that mean... Akane slipped off to sleep again, wondering if she perhaps (just perhaps - it wasn't like it was *her* fault or anything) acted too quickly and jumped to a conclusion. Of course not. That would have been shamelessly out of character. Right?  
  
A very special synthoid completed construction. Almost indistinguishable from human, Fess considered most of the synthoids created prior to this to be practice. Her eyes opened and she stood, dignified and proud. Then the moment was spoiled by her sneezing and falling on her butt.  
  
  
=================  
  
DIRECTOR: "Okay. Everybody ready? We have a Metroanime fic going in 3- 2-"  
  
STAGEHAND: "Shampoo's gone."  
  
DIRECTOR: "Excuse me?"  
  
STAGEHAND: "She's appearing with her stunt double in an episode of 'Slayers' and couldn't make it."  
  
DIRECTOR: "Okay. Fine. Get Miss Tsukino, we'll use 'Sash' for the obligatory Chinese Amazon."  
  
STAGEHAND#2: "She's over at a Sailor Moon fanfic written by Shades."  
  
DIRECTOR: "Hmmmm. Anyone else?"  
  
STAGEHAND#1: "Well, the usual Akane Tendo is appearing in a Pokemon fanfic as a member of Team Rocket."  
  
DIRECTOR: (blinks) "She's playing Jessie?"  
  
STAGEHAND #1: (consults clipboard) "Nope. James."  
  
DIRECTOR: (shrugs) "Figures. Least we've got her stunt double. That still leaves us with who to replace Shampoo with."  
  
CUTE LITTLE GIRL: (bouncing) "Uhm, excuse me, Mister Director Sir?!"  
  
DIRECTOR: "How about Frost?"  
  
STAGEHAND #1: (consults clipboard again) "Since that's DB Sommers invention, we can't use her without permission."  
  
(Sound of swearing from offstage.)  
  
CUTE LITTLE GIRL: (still bouncing and looking somewhat feline) "Yoo hoo!"  
  
DIRECTOR: "Well, it's got to be someone who's been used by at least one other author. Any other candidates?"  
  
CUTE LITTLE GIRL: (points to a chapter of Mirrors Multiplied) "Well lookee here!"  
  
DIRECTOR: "Waitaminute. Sugar and Spice were used by Ed Becerra once. What about them?"  
  
"rrrrrrrRYAAAUUUU TIGARCLAW!" (SLASH!)  
  
DIRECTOR: "Hey, what about Tigar?" (collapses, clothes shredded)  
  
----------  
  
RANMA 1/2: Eye Of The Tigar, an omake  
  
"ooo. Tigar like that title. Cue music."  
  
---------  
  
Beginning normal Ranma 1st season opening animation:  
  
"Ya pai pai ya pai pai "(zhuuuuuuuup!) (this being the sound of a record needle being yanked off a record.)  
  
CUTE LITTLE GIRL from earlier sequence sticks her head slowly out of the corner of the screen. GIRL then leaps out to center stage with an old fashioned guitar.   
  
"She loves you nyau nyau nyau! She loves you nyau nyau nyau! She loves you nyau nyau nyau nyau nyau! With a love like that, you know you should be glaaaaaad! Mewwwwwwwww!"  
  
Four guys who look drawn by Peter Max step out from one side. "Uhm, no you can't use that song here, you know. It's a Beatles song, not a catgirl song."  
  
Tigar thinks briefly before grinning and trying again. As she plays, she bounces around like a hyperactive ultra-cute catgirl. At one point she's doing a handstand and playing the guitar with her feet. (tune: Johnny B Goode)  
  
"Way out in China near Jusenkyo,  
Just beyond them there evergreens,  
stands a little village called Nichieju,  
where a girl grew up named Tigar ooo!  
Who never heeded Elders very well,  
but she could play guitar like ringing a bell!  
  
"Go go go,  
Go Tigar go go go,  
Go Tigar go go go!  
  
"Tigar Be Good!  
  
"She used to hide guitar in a gunny sack,  
And sit beneath the trees out by dirt track,  
Then while she be sitting out in that shade,  
her airen she met - what a mess that made.  
Elders she upset as usual way,  
But Tigar not care she just want to play!  
  
"She had to go,  
Go Tigar go go go,  
Go Tigar go go go!  
  
"Tigar Be Good!"  
  
Tigar catches Ranma trying to sneak away and pounces on him.  
  
-------  
  
Episode 3: Here's Tendos?!  
  
-------  
  
"He should be here any moment," exclaimed the Tendo patriarch.  
  
"Where's that music coming from?" Nabiki asked as guitar music seemed to approach the house at ludicrous speed.  
  
(Hop) (Skip) (Tumble) (Bounce)  
  
A form landed in the backyard. "Excuse please. This Tendo dojo is-nyau? "  
  
The Tendo household assembled at the doorway and stared.  
  
"She's a," began Kasumi.  
  
"catgirl in bike shorts and a loose top," continued Nabiki, raising her camera.  
  
"with a guitar," added Akane.  
  
"Oh my," said Soun.  
  
Tigar repeated her question. "You know where find Tendo Dojo-nyau?"  
  
"This *is* the Tendo Dojo," admitted Kasumi.  
  
"Oh!" The strange girl did a cartwheel. "Tigar come ahead, tell Tendo have hot water ready. You fix, yes! Ranma-airen and Genma-oyaji need when catch up-nyau!"  
  
"You know Saotome?!" Soun immediately began weeping. Soon the houses would be joined!  
  
"Yah!" Tigar nodded happily. "Ranma airen! Genma stupid oyaji! Tigar go on long adventure with! They here soon be! Nyaa!"  
  
"Oh happy day! Oh joyous time!" Soun began celebrating early.  
  
Nabiki blinked at the sight of her father, wondering again if somehow she'd been adopted into this family. "Okay, so how do you know the Saotomes, anyway?"  
  
Tigar quickly encapsulated the two previous episodes. How she had broken a bootlace and so was lagging on her patrol when this boy ran over her. Due to the laws of her tribe, she then gave chase. After finding out that her new beloved had been cursed at Jusenkyo, Tigar stopped trying to give the interloper a knuckle sandwich and instead pursued him for an engagement.  
  
"Wait one moment. You mean to say that..." Soun went from elated to livid.  
  
"Ah, was too too romantic," happily sighed Tigar. She then went on to how the three of them went to a place where curses could be broken. Unfortunately the curses broken were not the ones they'd originally intended to have cured. Tigar hadn't wanted to actually get involved herself, as she didn't have any curses but her father had. "Romantic but dangerous! Nyaow!"  
  
"Curses?" Nabiki sounded slightly skeptical.  
  
"Tigar father was mountain cat who fall into cursed spring Jusenkyo. He turn human and defeat mother. So naturally Tigar know Jusenkyo - is family history. Nyaa?" Tigar grinned at the shorthaired girl, revealing little fangs. "Tigar affected by Curse Cure Fountain, get more catlike and less humanlike as result. Tigar say 'stupid Oyaji' for anger spirits. Nyarrrr."  
  
Nabiki, confronted with further evidence that the girl in front of them was not quite human, quieted down.  
  
"Ranma get cure from stupid oyaji who make scared cats." Tigar nodded. "Stupid Oyaji no say what get cured, but Tigar think she know. His scent change - think maybe he cursed have no more kids. Nyuuu"  
  
"Put me down!"  
  
Tigar jumped up and clapped hands. "That them! Nyaa."  
  
Soun eyed the enthusiastic little obstacle. Perhaps...  
  
--------  
  
EYECATCH:  
  
Tigar with an electric guitar playing a riff.  
  
Scene expands outward to show other cast members with prominent earplugs.  
  
--------  
  
EYECATCH #2:  
  
Tigar playing an electric guitar.  
  
Scene expands to show other cast members with other instruments.  
  
--------  
  
"So hot water restores you, well, your problem isn't so bad," suggested Soun.  
  
"Tigar agree. Ranma takes own problem too serious. Need to lighten up. Mrow."  
  
Soun twitched a little. "So these are my three daughters. Kasumi, she's 19. Nabiki, she's 17. Akane, she's 16. Pick anyone you like, she'll be your new fiancee."  
  
"Say what?" Ranma inquired, wondering if he'd misheard something.  
  
"Say what-nyaa?" echoed Tigar.  
  
"Yes, this predates your claim, Tigar. You'll have to give up on Ranma and return to your village," agreed Genma. Even if she *was* a good cook. Besides, Genma wasn't sure he could put up with all that perkiness much longer.  
  
"Hmmmm. Tigar not sure she believe stupid panda man. Nyam."  
  
"Oyaji. If not for trying to help *us* out, Tigar wouldn't have gotten all catty. Remember - she *used* to look just a *little* catty." Ranma had been treated nicely by a perky devoted girl. If a little weird. Okay, a *lot* weird. Still, he had kind of gotten used to her.  
  
"Is this because Tigar younger than Ranma?" Tigar, as was her tendency, approached this problem from some different angles. Because she was twelve, four years younger than Ranma - she might be dismissed from consideration here. Though she was also considering what approach she could take that wouldn't actually break any rules but still annoy the Elders. Not that she'd admit to her real age - she told everyone she was fourteen. "Tigar old enough by standards of village but understand if airen want to wait until Ranma old enough by his law. Nyaa?"  
  
"Out of the question... what *are* you doing?!" Soun was a little concerned at how the girl was sniffing at each of his daughters.  
  
Tigar made a point of visibly examining each of the three girls. "Airen? Which one you like? Mya!"  
  
"You're not gonna do that 'Kiss Of Death' thing, are you?"  
  
Tigar pointed to Kasumi. "She smell like too too good cook (sniff sniff) also pine? She smell like nice girl. Myea?"  
  
"Oh my," Kasumi wasn't sure what else she could say. That had sounded like a compliment though the comment about her smelling was uncertain at best.  
  
Tigar pointed to Nabiki. "She smell like paper and ink and other thing Tigar not know word for. Also wear lavender scent. She have very sexy look, nyaaa?"  
  
Nabiki opened her mouth and shut it a few times as she tried to figure out what to say.  
  
Tigar now pointed at Akane. "She smell like fighter. Need bathe more often. Myau?"  
  
"HEY!" Akane didn't like this. "I was just working out!"  
  
"Well, Akane, you do get a bit whiffy after practice," pointed out Nabiki.  
  
"'Kiss Of Death'?" Soun inquired.  
  
"Would be promise to track to ends of Earth and kill, obstacle is for killing, that sort of crap," said Tigar, looking over the three. "Mew?"  
  
"HEY! I accept your challenge!" Akane made a muscle gesture.  
  
"You does?" Tigar blinked. "You sure? Nyam?"  
  
"No problem," replied the confident Akane.  
  
Tigar shrugged and put her gloves on. "Okay. Would have chosen Katsumi if was up to Tigar. Nyaa."  
  
"Oh dear!" Kasumi said.  
  
"What's with the gloves?" Nabiki wanted to know.  
  
Tigar held up a hand. "You see what happen to Tigar hands when magic alter? Nails like claw. Mew."  
  
Akane thought about this while going to the dojo. Probably use claw swipe attacks.  
  
Tigar whistled a happy tune.  
  
The two took positions.  
  
"Last chance. You want back out now. Tigar tell Ranma choose good cook. She very..." Tigar tried to find a word in her limited Japanese vocabulary. "erekant? Nya?"  
  
"Elegant," supplied Nabiki, suspicions forming that the catgirl was having a different conversation from the rest of them.  
  
"?!" Kasumi began to wonder the same thing herself.  
  
"Go!" Akane launched herself, pivoting so as to throw a kick.  
  
Tigar ducked, rolled, sprang. "Special Amazon Manuever: Wedgie From Hell!Myaa." (TWANG!)  
  
Having her panties snagged and the leg straps pulled up around her ears, Akane did the most logical thing. "EEEEEEK!"  
  
As Akane tried to free herself, Tigar moved in and wrapped herself limberly around her opponent. "You give up now, okay? Nya!"  
  
"NO WAY!" Akane broke the hold and sent a mule kick back.  
  
Tigar grabbed the leg, then began spinning around faster and faster. Akane went from one legged hopping to screeching and feeling centrifigul force. Tigar let go. "Ooo. That make Tigar little dizzy."  
  
Akane went shooting out the dojo door, slamming into the wall of her own house.  
  
Seeing the girl was dazed, Tigar leapt.  
  
"No! Don't..." Ranma's voice trailed off as he realized that was *not* the Kiss Of Death. "That's the Kiss Of Marriage."  
  
Akane woke up to feel someone's tongue in her mouth. She was being kissed? By a good kisser. Hey! Waitaminute! She was being bent backwards, being given a very passionate smooch by... another girl?!  
  
"Oh my!" Kasumi crossed herself. Seeing her little sister turn red and apparently faint while being kissed, with an odd smile on her face, it did seem to confirm something Kasumi had begun suspecting about Akane.  
  
"Now everything fine. Ranma can have too too cute Amazon bride and, what is word?" Tigar took out her little dictionary, dropping the stunned Akane. "Ah! Mistress! Nyuuu!"  
  
Akane twitched a little, her fingers slowly coming up to her mouth.  
  
"Now everyone can be happy, nya?" Tigar nodded.  
  
Akane went immediately from stunned to running. From the sound of it she went directly to her room.  
  
"Was it something Tigar said, myaa?"  
  
--------  
  
"Didn't stupid oyaji say that it Ranma who make choice, mya?"  
  
"I ain't choosin' *nobody*!"  
  
"I am *not* marrying you!" Akane being forcibly dragged from her room by her sisters ("you are *not* leaving us to deal with this, Akane") back into this situation was not happy.  
  
"No, mya?"  
  
"NO!!!"  
  
"Okay. Tigar have Ranma all to self!^_^ nyaa!"  
  
Stupid oyaji/Genma was really sorry about a lot of this. "RANMA! YOU MUST MARRY A TENDO!"  
  
"That's right, honor demands this!" Soun was quick to back Genma up. Though he had to wonder how Tigar had managed to say "^_^". Even though Tigar's habit of calling Genma 'stupid oyaji' (due to Ranma introducing Genma as such when they'd first met) was beginning to catch on.   
  
"Is Chinese honor less important than Japanese honor? Nyu?" Tigar voicing this concern.  
  
"Yes!" Soun declared unwisely.  
  
*WHAM!*  
  
Tigar might have been a cute and cuddly catgirl nonconformist, but she was still an Amazon.   
  
Soun began hopping around on one leg after Tigar had bashed the other knee pretty hard.  
  
Genma decided to save his knees and merely looked sympathetically towards Soun. "Now *that* he had coming."  
  
Tigar paused thoughtfully. "So is important honor Ranma marry Tendo, mya?"  
  
"Yes," agreed Soun with tears running down his face.  
  
*SMMOOOOOOOCHHHHH!*  
  
Everyone stared as Nabiki's arms flailed wildly around as she was being kissed by Tigar.  
  
Kasumi especially stared when Nabiki was lowered gently to the ground. Nabiki was not available for comment as she was staring at absolutely nothing in particular. So she merely sat stunned while Nabiki was kissed by Tigar. Which was unfortunate as Kasumi then found herself sharing lipspace with the Amazon. "Mmmmmffff?!"  
  
"There, now all set. Ranma can now marry Tendo. Finish ceremony soon! nyaa!"  
  
"I don't think she gets it," observed Ranma.  
  
"What did you do, exactly?" Soun asked of the little girl.  
  
Tigar licked her lips. That Kasumi girl tasted of cherry lipstick. Yum! "Simple. Ranma married to Tigar in eyes of tribe, nya? Tigar give kiss of marriage to all three Tendo. Now Tigar married to Ranma and Tendo, therefore Ranma married to Tendo, nya!"  
  
Akane had turned her back and had been ignoring all of them when this penetrated. "WHAT?!"  
  
"Though Akane need learn be better kisser. She no fun at all. Kasumi tasty. Nabiki very nice too. Tigar like thems better." Tigar looked to Ranma. "What with you, airen? nya?"  
  
Ranma simply covered his head and hoped he would wake up soon.  
  
Genma got a thoughtful expression. The important thing was to marry Ranma to a Tendo, retire, lie around and play shogi, get drunk, fall down, not have to worry about meals because Ranma would be supporting him. What the little Amazon girl had just done indicated that she would *not* be acting as an obstacle, but actively playing mediator between Ranma and all three of Soun's daughters. Which meant that he must have somehow resolved the problem and found a solution that everyone could be happy with.  
  
Soun stopped in mid rant as Genma started whispering to him. The little Amazon girl had decided that all three of Soun's daughters were co-wives? Then let her have her fantasy! In the meantime, she'd be trying to match one or the other of the daughters with Ranma - they could let *her* play matchmaker while they decided what to do at their leisure.  
  
Tigar knew stupid oyaji and funny-cries-a-lot man were doing something strange. Hopefully she'd be able to figure it out later.  
  
"You... you... you..." Akane commenced slow burn.  
  
"Now, Tigar welcome three new members of Amazon tribe!" Tigar backflipped three times to come down in the back yard. "Since no of you good fighter, use something other than fighter ceremony, nya!"  
  
"We're now members of your tribe?" asked Nabiki, trying to ignore the odd feelings of having been kissed and hugged by an affectionate Amazon catgirl.  
  
"Yah!" Tigar dodged Akane's attack. "Nyah! Nyah! Akane too too slow. Tigar see Japanese wedding on TV. Tigar know what happen now! Nyaaaa!"  
  
Kasumi twitched.  
  
"Hold still so I can mmmmfffff!" Akane went back to being shocked as her mouth was stuffed full by an apple. "MMmmF?!"  
  
"Wedding feast, nya!"  
  
"MMMMFFFF!" Akane tried to get a Size B apple out of a Size A mouth.  
  
(STUFF!) (STUFF!) (STUFF!)  
  
Tigar dusted off her hands. Even though his mouth was full of riceball, training with Genma had equipped Ranma for such situations and he was able to overcome this difficulty. Nabiki and Kasumi, neither being stubborn, helped each other dislodge their gags.  
  
"Now for final of Japanese wedding! Tigar favorite part! Nyeah!"  
  
Ranma groaned. Akane stopped trying to dislodge the apple. Genma and Soun hid. Kasumi looked vaguely alarmed and took a bite of her peach. Nabiki looked concerned and nibbled on her rice ball. Would this be a lemon scene involving all three Tendo girls, Ranma, and Tigar?!  
  
Tigar produced her guitar. "Karaoke! Nyeah nyeah!"  
  
Three daughters Tendo facefaulted. Nabiki felt a twinge of disappointment.  
  
"One two three o'clock,  
four o'clock rock,  
five six seven o'clock,  
eight o'clock rock,  
nine ten eleven o'clock,  
twelve o'clock rock,  
we gonna rock around the clock tonight!"  
  
Akane went back to trying to dislodge the apple.  
  
Kasumi and Nabiki exchanged a glance. Nabiki raised an eyebrow and mouthed "she's actually pretty good." Kasumi nodded, surprised herself. Especially as the girl had thickly accented and poorly structured Japanese, but apparently English (or at least their songs) was another story.  
  
"We gonna rock around the clock tonight,  
got to rock rock rock to the broad daylight,  
gonna rock gonna rock around the clock tonight!"  
  
Tigar was in her favored element. She was the best tracker of the Nichieju. She wasn't as fast or as strong as some of the other fighters. On the other hand she *loved* American and British rock and roll. (And as it really annoyed the Elders, she had gotten even more enthusiastic about this little hobby.)  
  
Tigar danced and played the guitar, showing every sign of having feline flexibility and agility.  
  
Genma and Soun straightened up from their hiding places. It was a pity but they'd hoped that Ranma and at least one daughter could be found enjoying each other's company and could then be rushed to the altar. Oh well, the night was still young.  
  
Tigar finished "rock around the clock" and immediately went into a completely different song.  
  
"Love love love!  
Love love love!  
Love love love!  
myow myow myow-me-myow!"  
  
Akane stopped trying to free the apple from her mouth as it penetrated that this subhuman animal was singing. She wasn't half bad either. Not that *she* couldn't do better, of course!  
  
"All you need is love!  
All together now!  
All you need is love!  
Everybody!  
All you need is love, love,  
Love is all you need!"  
  
Flushed and happy, Tigar grabbed the apple from Akane's mouth and handed her sister-wife her favorite guitar. "Akane turn nyow! Something happy, nyaaa?"  
  
*KA-BONG!*  
  
Turning her back on the flattened catgirl and the remains of the guitar, Akane hmmmphed. "Honestly!"  
  
"Akane?" Nabiki asked of her departing sister.  
  
"WHAT?! Don't tell me you *want* to be part of this pervert's harem!"  
  
Nabiki colored slightly. "That wasn't my point. How old do you think she is?"  
  
"How should I know?!" Akane glared at her sisters for keeping her here when she *could* be gargling an entire bottle of Scope.  
  
Ranma spoke, a little concerned about what would happen when Tigar got back up. "Twelve. She says she's fourteen, but slipped once and admitted she was twelve."  
  
"Congratulations, Akane. You just beat up a twelve year old girl." Nabiki golf-clapped her younger sister.  
  
Soun was quick to act. Little girl went into a box, which was chained shut and addressed to Antarctica. Let Genma hatch his schemes when it wasn't *his* little girls being dragged into some incestuous mass lemon scene!  
  
"myew?! Hssssssssssssssss"   
  
Soun continued running for the post office. Only a few more yards.  
  
(SHRED!) (GRAB!) (STUF!)  
  
"Hello, need send package to Antarctica, nyau!"  
  
--------  
  
KASUMI'S VOICE: "Oh my. Next week on Ranma 1/2!"  
  
TIGAR'S VOICE: "Why can Tigar no go to Ranma-airen's school! Not fair! Tigar sneak in anyway. Mya!"  
  
AKANE'S VOICE: "What do you mean 'Bridal Training'?!"  
  
NABIKI'S VOICE: "Akane. Those are *not* melons, you can't squeeze them, and they are not for sale. Go fondle someone else."  
  
SOUN'S VOICE: "S-s-s-s-s-so c-c-c-c-cold!"  
  
GENMA'S VOICE: "On the other hand, two of them can cook, and this *would* prove Ranma was a 'man among men' curse or not. Hmmmmm."  
  
RANMA'S VOICE: "Uhm. No, I've still got the catfist. I'm just not scared of cats no more."  
  
SOMEONE ELSE: "FOUL SORCERER! I SHALL SMITE THEE AND THY FOUL FAMILIAR!"  
  
TIGAR'S VOICE: "You heading for major ka-powie, Blue Fart. Nya."  
  
SOMEONE ELSE AGAIN: "THAT'S BLUE THUNDER!!!"  
  
TIGAR'S VOICE: "Sound more like Blue Fart. Akane agree - Nya?"  
  
AKANE'S VOICE: "You know, that's kind of catchy."  
  
RYONAMI'S VOICE: "Nabiki?! Is there something you're not telling us?"  
  
NABIKI'S VOICE: "I AM NOT 'THAT WAY'!!! Akane's the lesbian in the family. NOT me."  
  
AKANE'S VOICE: "I'm WHAT?!?!"  
  
KASUMI'S VOICE: "You'll have to forgive my sister. She's very nice, it's just that she's a violent maniac."  
  
TIGAR'S VOICE: "You know. We have girl just like that in village. Nye-ha-ha"  
  
SHAMPOO'S VOICE: "Aaa-chooooo!"  
  
-----------  
  
Ending animation:   
  
Tigar puts her WWI aviator goggles on. An engine roars.  
  
With a screech of rubber, Tigar gets a motorcycle going with Ranma clinging for dear life behind her. Behind *him* is the rest of the cast. End credits roll overhead as the chase goes on (though in slow motion).  
  
"Just an old fashioned love song  
Playing on the radio,  
And wrapped around the music,  
is the sound of someone   
saying they'll never go.  
  
Just an old fashioned love song,  
one I'm sure they wrote for you and me.  
Just an old fashioned love song,  
coming down in Neriman cacophany!"  
  
As the end credits finish, you hear Tigar's voice going "Is time for lemon scene yet?"   
  
Ranma's voice replied. "W-w-w-what?! NO! No it isn't!"  
  
----------  
  
Tigar (bounces around): "Well, is it good?! Good yes!"  
  
Producer: "Don't call us. We'll call you."  
  
Tigar: "Tigar no have phone. How you call?"  
  
Producer: "It means you've been rejected. You're not original enough."  
  
Tigar: "Tigar want recount. Well, at least can maybe appear as minor supporting character in other fanfics?"  
  
Producer: "Don't count on it." 


	17. Chapter 17

Retake 17: Game Day  
  
Having been summoned to the Tendo Dojo, Greylle hadn't been sure *what* to expect. Akane had shown up human at the school that morning. There had been a few strange stories passed about by the gossips/hentai duo of Hiroshi and Daisuke. Though those two had seemed subdued for some reason.  
  
Akane seemed to have gotten over her attitude from yesterday somewhat. Temper like an Arizona monsoon, sudden fits of overwhelming violence that dissipated after a few minutes.  
  
Suddenly finding himself confronted by Akane, with most of the Ranma cast briefly showing up in the background (followed by them vanishing again), he had to wonder if this was some *other* imagined fault he was going to be hit with.  
  
Then she'd made her request.  
  
Greylle considered beating his head against the wall. No, here where he had been summoned - the Tendo dojo, he'd wreck the place in short order.  
  
"Oh come on! I'm a martial artist and we seem to get along, why not?" Akane grinned and punched her fist into the palm of the other hand. "I can do it! Father won't train me. Ranma won't take me seriously. You showed me that 'Boot to da head' manuever..."  
  
Maybe he was looking at this the wrong way. Instead of looking at it as being forced to endure her company, he could instead be using it to make her lose interest in him and maybe kindle a spark between Ranma and Akane. Though if they were a Destined Couple then *why* did anyone have to force the two together? Pfeh.  
  
"...and if you're defending Tokyo, then you could definitely use help. Those mechanicals of yours can't fill in for a *real* fighter," Akane declared without any real confidence in this point. Since she'd lost the tigergirl form she'd been wanting *something* to make up for it. "Those Sailor Senshi? They may end up your enemies again!"  
  
Greylle held up a hand and tried to look solemn. Akane always looked for a fast method or instant power up like the Super Soba or Battle Dogi. Well, how about some of the stuff he'd gotten from Valkyrie Boot Camp? "Akane, if i do this, you will come to hate me. You will endure a hundred kinds of agony and humiliation, but if you endure and master the lessons you'll be a dozen times more potent than you are now."  
  
Akane cast a glance towards the baseball bat she could barely move, then up at the figure before her. He didn't lie to her. Even when he said he'd bring Nabiki back from the dead, he'd done it. Say he could take her to Mars, he had. Save her life after her own head had been chopped off by that damn Ryouga, done. Turn her back to normal from being a sexy and superpowerful tigergirl - and he had, damn it. If he said he could improve her martial arts, he could. If he said it would hurt, it would.  
  
Greylle saw her about to blurt out an agreement and had second thoughts. Spending a lot of time alone with Akane? Yech. Maybe he should try to get her to rethink it. She seemed to value the traditional preoccupation with kawaii. "Before you agree, consider that it will be hard training unlike anything you've ever undergone. It won't be easy, and that you will have to put aside a lot of the luxuries and comforts you're used to. This is a path of the Warrior - a dedicated fighter. Cute is applicable for children and small pets, a Warrior is never 'cute'. You can turn back now and there is no loss of honor or reputation in deciding not to embrace the Warrior Path. The enemies you'd be training to fight do not follow martial arts match rules, and if you fight them would think nothing of crippling or killing you." There, by having her have to choose between cute and some painful training, Akane would back down.  
  
Akane studied his face. He was dead serious. This was not a game. She could get killed or disfigured fighting the sorts of enemies the Sailor Senshi reportedly had. He was also apparently very real in his confidence that she would hate him after the training. Did she want to progress at that kind of cost?  
  
Greylle looked away, worried. Why wasn't she just rejecting the training? She hated boys, which he definitely was at the moment, and wasn't a dedicated martial artist of Ranma's obsession level. She should be going on about the Tendo School and... THAT would do it! "While you're learning the new style of course, until you've mastered it, you would not be able to practice your family school. You haven't mastered the Tendo Ryuu, and the two are not strictly compatible."  
  
Akane was uncomfortable with this but had come to certain conclusions, and as was In Character for her, was fitting everything into place based on those pre-existing conclusions. She therefore knew that this training was dangerous and that Greylle was trying to discourage her from undergoing it, and yet he was unlike Ranma who simply dodged everything and made fun of her. She knew, from Nabiki's earlier comment and her own observations, that the gaijin was deeply in love with her and no doubt therefore had doubts about his own ability to put her through some dangerous training. This led Akane to some concern that the big idiot here saw her as fragile (though another glance at the baseball bat made her wonder if she'd survive a friendly hug if it came down to it). She knew he was shy around her, hey waitaminute. Pride went back and looked over that line where he saw her as fragile! She'd have to prove otherwise wouldn't she!  
  
Greylle was beginning to get a little more nervous. The expressions flitting across Akane's face were difficult to read, other than anger and pensive. What was going on in that head of hers?  
  
Ranma popped his head out, sealing doom for everyone involved. "Ah, training her is a waste of time. She's too slow, too clumsy, and she relies on anger. If you're teaching special techniques though..."  
  
*THWAM!*  
  
"Shut up, Ranma!"  
  
The pigtailed boy imbedded in the ground held up a finger. "...see what I mean?"  
  
"Shampoo think learn special techniques from other airen sound like good idea."  
  
"They ain't your airen, sugar. Still, Ranma-honey's got a point, it'd be nice to have backup."  
  
"Oh my. Look Akane, all your little friends are here."  
  
"two hundred... two hundred thirty... two hundred fourty yen." Nabiki looked up innocently. "What? Hey it's not like I've sold state secrets here!"  
  
---------  
  
Hotaru changed first her clothes. A pair of comfortable shorts, a loose top, and left her hands and feet bare.   
  
Then she studied her hands and willed the other change. Other than the nails thickening and lengthening, her hands didn't change. She had to adjust the shorts to let her tail loose, but catgirl Hotaru was ready to try out her new catgirl superpowers!  
  
Super jumping ability, check. A good thirty feet, she guessed.  
Super strength, check. At least ten times her normal strength. (She could lift at least 200 pounds!)  
Super agility, check. The crane game fell before her feline might.  
Super flexibility, check. This would come in handy if she joined the yoga club.  
  
"NOW I'VE GOT YOU!" Some boy yelled as he leapt out of an alley and leveled a sparkling wand at her. "LOVESLAVE!"  
  
*SLASH!*  
  
Super feline claw powers, check.  
Immunity to being turned into whatever that guy had been trying to do, check.  
  
Hotaru licked the blood off her claws, not realizing how gross that would normally have been to her, and decided she ought to go see what Greylle-sempai was up to.  
  
Behind her, another member of the Hentai Sorcery Club collapsed and was soon sent to the hospital.  
  
---------  
  
The view in the enchanted mirror faded.  
  
"Okay, the Loveslave spell doesn't work on catgirls or some normal girls," said one of the Ecchi would-be mages. "Works just fine on witches."  
  
Yugo looked up from where he was being miserable. Not that having a fawning loveslave was a bad thing, but he'd been practicing the spell and had accidently snagged his little sister. Whom he had always considered a sniveling brat with a whiney voice. Now he considered her a whiney sniveling brat who kept trying to rip his clothes off. "Here's something I ran into while trying to find a Remove Spell spell. Apparently there are ways of making these Servitor types."  
  
"You mean like youma, daimon, cardians, or that kinda thing?" Yoiyo nodded. "Sort of an element-theme based monster?"  
  
"Yeah. We need to try a different approach, this personal touch stuff is dangerous." Yugo wondered if Yumi could end up some kind of useful daimon.  
  
"So we enchant someone into one of these... what do we call them? They go and try to convert targets." Yoiyo nodded. "I like it. But then I like ideas that keep me from getting hurt."  
  
Ideas were thrown around. Some of the former Witches 5 threw ideas out too, excited by the concept.  
  
"Okay, it's decided," said Yoiyo. "We'll use the concept. We'll infuse the magical essence with an object, and send a Henjin out to test a spell or to recruit new subjects. What'll we use as the base for the first one?"  
  
---------  
  
"So, when's the training begin?" Akane looked into the room. A bare cot, simple table, a light inset into the wall. Almost looked like a prison cell instead of a bedroom.  
  
Akane took a step into the room.  
  
*THWAM!*  
  
Feeling her body attempting to become one with the stone, Akane tried to move. With great difficulty she shifted one arm.  
  
"This is a 10 gravity room, Akane," Greylle said, gently picking Akane up and moving her to the cot and arranging her so she was now face up and able to breathe.  
  
"Uhng!" Akane managed. It felt like her cheeks were trying to pin themselves to the pillow.   
  
"Ten gravities mean everything weighs ten times what you're used to. You normally weigh, oh, about 125 pounds. In here you weigh 1250 pounds. I'll come back and get you in an hour."  
  
"mmmmmmmmmmg!" Akane struggled briefly, then realized her sensei was moving very carefully but without apparent effort. Lying there helpless, Akane vowed that in one hour she would at least be off the bed.  
  
--------  
  
Michiru noted the presence in her mirror of some dark shadowy menace, and acted in a manner not usually within her character.  
  
Like pumping her fist and spinning. "YES! Haruka, there's a new menace!"  
  
Haruka grinned. "Oh. Well, now we have to show you MERE substitutes how the REAL Sailor Senshi operate."  
  
Michiru II cocked her head slightly, lowering the violin. "Very well. We shall accompany, observe, and provide fire support."  
  
Michiru continued to smile. "No, that will never do. Sailor business."  
  
Haruka nodded. "Oh yes, that's right. We certainly can't have some windup dolls confusing things. This is a REAL battle against a REAL menace."  
  
Haruka II held up a hand. "You're still upset about me beating you in those races, aren't you?"  
  
Michiru II considered this. "That is not a logical attitude. It would be better to accept whatever reinforcements and powerups you can negotiate when facing an enemy of unknown capabilities."  
  
"Logic has no place in my life," said Haruka proudly. Then frowned because that had *not* come out right.  
  
"We were handling situations like this before you were a gleam in your creator's eyes," instructed Michiru. "This is definitely a job for experienced professionals."  
  
"NOT wind up dolls," interpreted Haruka. She and Michiru were Perfect together, they could accomplish anything in perfect synch. A bunch of imitation Sailors were neither wanted or needed. Especially ones that were continually showing them up!  
  
The two marionettes touched hands and exchanged a datastream. Inquiries were made, decisions reached.  
  
"Very well," said Haruka II. "I want to work on that motorcycle anyway. I think I can tweak the engine efficiency up by at least 0.24%."  
  
The human Haruka twitched.  
  
"Whereas I feel the need for a fractal art, perhaps something moody dealing with a seascape from Garibaldi's moon," mused Michiru II. "The starfields visible there should produce a ethereal calming beauty."  
  
The human Michiru twitched.   
  
"Oh," said Michiru after she'd recovered. Bad enough to have these copies. Bad enough for them to be faster, stronger, more technically correct. Worse for them to develop creativity and copy little gestures and individual movements. "If you're going to *imitate* us, get the clothes right."  
  
Michiru II sighed and rolled her eyes. Haruka II snickered.   
  
"Neither of us wears a 'bunnysuit'," said Haruka as she left. "Put some *real* clothes on."  
  
Haruka II shrugged as she looked at her companion. "Frankly, I think I look good in it."  
  
"You do," agreed Michiru II. "Humans. Who can figure them? She didn't even realize we'd borrowed these outfits from their dressers."  
  
--------  
  
"Hey Akane, why are you just " *THWAM!*  
  
Akane recognized the voice and *really* wished she could look. The sight of Ranma plastered on the floor would have done her enormous good.  
  
"ouch," said Ranma. "Well, that explains THAT! Unnnghhh."  
  
Greylle came by, saw Ranma weakly struggling (in girl form yet) to rise up, picked her up and put her in the bed next to Akane. This should allow the two a common experience to share, and the two would be closer as a result.  
  
Ranma weakly struggled, especially after she realized that she was in bed with AKANE?! If the old man could see them, they'd be married that afternoon!  
  
After considerable effort, Ranma lifted herself up, slowly moved towards the edge of the bed. Freedom!  
  
*THWAM!*  
  
Practically imbedded in the floor, Ranma realized that at least she wasn't in bed with the tomboy!  
  
Akane would have pummelled Ranma if she could have known that was what the strained laughter was about. Well, that and if she could have moved.  
  
-------  
  
Sailor Moon stared. While she wanted to get back into the swing of things and prove that just because her android double was smarter, a better student, more graceful, stronger, faster, a better cook, and more popular - she was still the reborn Moon Princess who was going to end up ruling the world!   
  
It was just that... "We have to fight THAT?!"  
  
"BREAAAAA!"  
  
Even Sailor Jupiter was staring and looking distinctly unhappy. "What IS it?"  
  
Sailor Mercury was glad of the chance to get away from attempts of her mother to get Ami to go visit "that nice dragon prince and see if he could part with a diagnostic scanner for just a bit" or something. She busied herself with the Mercury Computer. "It's a magical construct. Main attack seems to be a magical transformation beam."  
  
"No kidding," said Sailor Uranus who had been hit by that very beam early on. "Other than removing clothes, I can't see any other effects."  
  
The beam swept out from the monster. Women's clothing could be seen rising in a streamer from the impact point, joining with the monster and increasing its size slightly. Feminine screams could be heard all around it.  
  
"Well, let's just fight the thing," said Sailor Uranus.   
  
"Not everyone is as anxious to make a public spectacle of themselves as you," indicated Sailor Mars.  
  
Another beam from the monster. More feminine screams, and the monster was now 30' tall.   
  
"I'll get it," Sailor Jupiter announced, rushing forward.  
  
"Wait," called out Sailor Mercury. "Oh. Too late."  
  
"Jupiter Thunder Attack!" ZAP! "Eeeeeek!"  
  
"Got everything but her hair scrunchie and her earrings," noted Haruka with an appreciative eye. "Shouldn't you all attack it en masse?"  
  
Sailor Venus tried a different tack, leaping from ground to ledge to roof, then posing. "Women's clothing is colorful and in fashion, and should not be attacking their owners. I, Sailor Venus, will punish y... EEEEEEP!"  
  
"At least it left her hair ribbon," said Haruka.  
  
"Waaaaaahhhhhhh," cried Sailor Venus from her position on the roof, desperately trying to cover herself.  
  
"While it seems silly, note that the attack does cause the victims to give up their own attacks," said Sailor Mercury. Not that she was going to attack it.  
  
"Excuse me," said Kumori Mizuno, who had given Ami a ride and so far hadn't been terribly impressed with the performance of daughter or friends.  
  
"Moon Tiara Action," said Sailor Moon, stepping around the corner and doing her magic frizbee attack.  
  
"BREAA!"  
  
"WAGHHhHHH!"   
  
"Got her hair ornaments too," noted Haruka appreciatively.  
  
The monster lumbered forward, turning the corner that these pests kept popping up from around.  
  
"Oh heck," said Mercury, currently a blushing bundle of embarassment.  
  
"BREAAAA!"  
  
Doctor Mizuno went back to her car. She had a spare labcoat there, which beat her current lack of raiment. Muttering something about how grounded Ami was going to be if she didn't do something *fast*.  
  
Rei stood, barefoot among other things and gestured. "Unforgiveable. MARS Fire SOUL! Fire Soul! Fire Soul! Fire Soul!"  
  
"BreaAAAAAA!"  
  
Haruka clenched a fist. "Yeah! Burn! Burn, you monster! See! We don't need any robots or powerups or..."  
  
"Nice," said the returning Doctor Mizuno. "You *do* realize that all of your clothes, my clothes, and all the clothes of all those women are what is producing that three story tall pillar of flame, right?"  
  
The various naked Senshi began to sweat as the burning monster crashed into several stores and continued to blaze merrily under the influence of Mars' magical flame.  
  
"Young lady," began Doctor Mizuno, addressing the still trying to cover herself Mercury. "We are going to have to talk."  
  
--------  
  
Haruka II finished relaying the fight sequence.  
  
"How embarassing," said Kasumi, watching from where it had been televised through the complex.  
  
"Maybe I shouldn't offer to help on their next encounter," mused Nabiki. Up until that she'd wanted to practice her Drill Brand or Elmekion Lance. Though it didn't sound like they were too open to new members.  
  
"I'll bet our hardsuits would have been immune," opined Yuka. "They're technically armor, not clothes."  
  
Sayuri had a different opinion. "Why would you want to fight a thirty five foot tall bundle of clothes in the first place?"  
  
"Man, the stink off of all that latex and stuff." One of the Maid units wrinkled her nose. "Why didn't Mercury or Neptune try to put out the fire?"  
  
"Mercury is getting dragged off by her mother, Neptune is running from a crowd of naked enraged shopkeepers," observed another Maid unit. "It looks like Sailor Uranus was trying to use a World Shaking on the pile of clothes, but just blew it up instead. Ooooo! Now Neptune's led them back and the crowd's throwing things at the other Senshi."  
  
"Hotaru," said Setsuna, casually finishing her tea and looking quite elegant and refined, "it looks as if we are needed to rescue our fellow Senshi."  
  
Hotaru nodded. "Okay! Fess-san, please build me a *good* combat mecha!"  
  
--------  
  
Akane sighed as regular gravity returned. Clearly Greylle had overestimated her abilities. On the other hand the realization that Ranma hadn't exactly bounced back was well appreciated. Something else had penetrated during that time.  
  
He was taking her seriously as a martial artist. Clearly he respected her. Maybe she would have to convince him that she was a *little* fragile, but he was taking her a *lot* more seriously than Ranma did.  
  
Not that she was interested, of course.  
  
-----  
  
The Hentai Sorcerers rejoiced.   
  
"Woo hoo! Dibs on the short haired blonde!"  
  
"I think the one with the green hair's gonna have *my* brand."  
  
"Yoiyo, that was *genius!*"  
  
Yoiyo smiled, surprised and pleased by how it had worked out. "Did we get it?"  
  
Hikaru smiled and tapped the camcorder.   
  
People would have shuddered at the sound of slightly lecherous insane laughter coming from the third floor of the school. That is, if anyone besides the cranky old janitor and the club were around to hear it.  
  
*Click!*  
  
"Hey, howcome the lights went off?"  
  
"Cause it's six o'clock!" The janitor yelled from the ground. "Damn whippersnappers can't even figure out a clock."  
  
-----  
  
She blinked and stared. "You think this transmission is accurate?"  
  
"Yes, princess. We have found the prince. He is on a Tech 6 planet with natives of a bipedal ape descendent. We followed a probe back to this world. He has apparently allied himself with a industrial nation of these natives." The scout raised his head and grinned.  
  
The princess grinned back. "At last. Mobilize the appropriate teams, destination... what do these natives refer to their world as?"  
  
Making a gesture of third degree embarassment tinged with anticipation, the scout replied. "Soil, princess."  
  
"Well, that's at least better than that world where the natives refer to their home planet as 'excrement'," allowed the princess. "Go then! To that distant soil!"  
  
-----  
  
"...and really young lady, I expected a lot more from you and your friends, letting a pile of dirty clothes get the better of you!"  
  
"Yes, mom," said the still very very embarassed Ami.  
  
"AEGIS was a wonderful little organization back in the late 60s, protecting the Earth from the Invaders. I suppose it was too much to hope for that my own daughter would follow their tradition." Kumori shook her head. "This *never* happened to the Gatekeepers. Of course, if it *had* things would have gotten interesting."  
  
"Yes, mom."  
  
"I... hang on while I get the phone." Kumori pressed speaker on her handset. "Doctor Mizuno here."  
  
"Hello, Doctor. This is Fess. I take it young Miss Mizuno and yourself are all right?"  
  
The doctor pulled her car into a parking lot. "You witnessed the battle?"  
  
Fess hesitated. "Not only was one of our marionettes watching this, some news channels managed to record some brief footage."  
  
Ami once again attempted to shrink into a tiny little ball.  
  
Doctor Mizuno fixed her daughter with a definite "we'll discuss this some more in private" look of maternal doom. "How bad?"  
  
"Well, they didn't get a lot of footage of your faces," allowed Fess.  
  
Ami whimpered.  
  
"You might want to avoid some of the editorials," added Fess. "The good news is that the marionettes all went into public areas and imitated the originals, with the exception of Haruka II - who was on scene. So nobody will be identified even if they think to do a point to point map of facial features."  
  
"What kind of editorials?" Kumori asked.  
  
Fess decided to just send a snippet. The voice was definitely someone else's. "Sailor Senshi, yesterday's heroes, today's zeroes. At fourteen they were the defenders of the world, a year later and they can't beat the Thing From Beneath The Laundromat without wholesale destruction. Can these former heroes salvage their reputation, or should they simply bow out and let this Prince Dragon or these superpowered catgirls and Nerima martial artists handle things? Especially disappointed were Sailor V fans, though seeing their idol stripped naked on primetime TV has some clamoring for posters. More after these messages."  
  
Ami pulled her head out of the huddle, wondering if she had heard Minako's scream of anguish or had she just imagined it?  
  
-------  
  
Various supermodel androids walked down the street.  
  
Traffic came to a halt. People (not just guys) walked into various inanimate objects.  
  
A pair of sleazy looking guys tried to convince the girls to come work for him. They tried flattery, bribery, then threats. They ended up getting stuffed into a mailbox.  
  
Which was when disaster hit. There was a theatre running a "chick flick" with the unlikely name of "Graduation IV - Exams Of Passion."  
  
The supermodels, naturally enough, went en masse as part of their desire for data on the activities of the human female.  
  
-----  
  
Ami looked miserable. Actually she looked kind of spiffy in a white peasant shirt and a pair of could-have-been sprayed on blue jeans. Her mother, in a similar outfit, proved that she might have been older but she was still hardly ready for retirement. And had avoided the usual pudginess striking Japanese women in their middle years.  
  
Most of the other Senshi were just grateful for the borrowed clothing but leaving as soon as possible.  
  
Doctor Mizuno had asked a simple question. "Why are you two looking at my daughter like that?"  
  
"We've seen something interesting lately," had allowed Hotaru, wanting to slap Ami for such shabby treatment of her sempai in a previous life.   
  
All of which had led to this and Ami's current misery.  
  
They were watching another sequence that Fess had recorded or accessed.  
  
This particular scene seemed to be set in some European pre-industrial setting. As for Ami's misery:  
  
"Daughter?" Kumori looked between the embarassed Ami and the one on the screen. "Is there something you want to tell me?"  
  
"This is a previous life," indicated Fess.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ami stood on the top of the tower and let her robe fall behind her to stand momentarily naked before the cliffs.  
  
Then she leapt.  
  
Her form shifted, enlarged, changed. Wings reached out to cup the air and shift falling into flight.  
  
~~~~~~~~  
  
Ami stared, her jaw hanging loose. Her mother also stared.  
  
Kasumi, who had just wandered in, smiled and sipped at her tea. "I didn't know you were a dragon in a previous life, Mizuno-san."  
  
"Neither did I, Tendo-san," managed Ami weakly.  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
The silver dragon flew overhead, looking amazingly graceful for something that was larger than most of the buildings it was passing over. She flew out to a larger dragon, moving around it in an elaborate pattern.   
  
The larger dragon briefly looked shocked, somehow conveying this in body language, then began responding in kind.  
  
They danced. An aerial ballet with the two arcing and diving in a manner that became more synchronized as they went. From over the city, the two gradually moved into some distant mountains, becoming lost to distance gradually.  
  
"Well, looks like Doctor Ami is finally mating," said a voice.  
  
"About time, I was beginning to worry about her," added a second.  
  
The camera angle changed, revealing a group of tanned European children of about twelve or so.  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ami blinked. She was a doctor? And a dragon? And... "mating"?!?!   
  
Doctor Mizuno nodded, not noticing her daughter was about to melt down into a little puddle of embarassment. "Like with your father. You have to be able clue your husband in on when appropriate times might be, being a doctor puts quite a strain on your personal time and energy after all."  
  
Setsuna sniffled. "That was so beautiful, the way she initiated a mating dance under a full moon. How romantic!"  
  
Hotaru wordlessly handed Setsuna a hankerchief.  
  
Ami twitched.  
  
"Oh my, that looked very... interesting." Kasumi said, wondering briefly if dragons used protection - and if so *how*?  
  
"One of the happiest times he'd had was this brief century in this particular culture," said Fess. "There were also times where the others he'd interacted with were also content. Not that there were not moments of friction."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ami stalked into the room. Not her usual glide. Not a walk. This was a definite "I've got a major problem" stalk.  
  
"Sensei, you honor us with your presence," said one of the younger girls as she curtsied.   
  
"THAT that that..." Ami threw her hands up in the air as if inarticulate at her frustration level.  
  
Wiping sweat, and leaving a trail of grease, the older redhead (though mainly gray) gestured to the others to go back to work on what looked like a primitive steam engine. "Guy problems? I take it a flight over the ocean or talking with the other dragons would not help?"  
  
"We started out human," Ami reminded the girl. "We still are, in a lot of ways. No, and they're all busy with their own little projects. Or they just smirk at me. Ukyo, how do you handle it?"  
  
Ukyo used a sweatrag to finish wiping her face. "How do I handle balancing being an explorer with being in charge of a group of engineers while I'm just a fixit-girl myself? How do I handle things on a human scale instead of being able to turn into a 'warrior of love and justice' or a dragon? How can I handle the idea that my good friend Ami is not only the head of our medical program, but is still a teenager while I'm pushing seventy?"  
  
Ami shook her head, pacing back and forth. "No, you've been married for forty years now."  
  
"Forty-three," automatically corrected Ukyo.  
  
"Your marriage isn't the mess mine is," declared Ami. "We've been going together for at least as long but he's..."  
  
"Ah," said Ukyo, understanding now. "We love each other. We fight, we yell, we apologize, we make mad passionate love (which is how we ended up with six kids), and we have learned that sometimes to stay together we have to spend time apart."  
  
Ami blinked, then turned to stare at her friend. "But everyone points to you two, and the trials you endured, as some great love story."  
  
"Someone wise once said 'an adventure is someone else going through a rough time'," quoted Ukyo. "We love each other dearly. That doesn't mean that once in a while one or the other of us doesn't get mule-headed and the other doesn't want to slap that someone around. Because each of us knows how much the other loves us, it makes the tough times bearable until we get back to the more friendly territory. Neither of you is a slave or a puppet, and disagreement is part of a healthy relationship too. Now tell me, do either of you say anything truly unforgiveable? Has either of you struck the other?"  
  
"Uhm, no," admitted Ami. "I just told him that he was an empty-headed reptile and he should go crawl under a rock..."  
  
"I've said worse to my Ranma," consoled Ukyo. "Hardly sounds like an 'epic romance', does it?"  
  
Ami sighed. "I suppose."  
  
Ukyo shook her head. "You know, my friend, let's go out tonight and party one last time. I suspect this'll be our last chance for such things, healing spells or no."  
  
"Huh?" Ami startled. "But you're still..."  
  
"Ami," said Ukyo with a smile. "I'll be seventy next week. I am neither dragon nor one of your 'senn chi' nor an android or one of your other companions. Most people back in the continents die at half my age. I've adventured and explored new lands. I've had six healthy kids, raised 'em, and now spoil the grandkids. I've found love and laughter and a good man. Maybe I'll continue on another seventy, but maybe not."  
  
"Grammy," scowled one of the younger redheads, hands on hips and glaring through her glasses, "don't talk like that!"  
  
Ukyo's smile widened a fraction. "Well now, Ami, shall we go check out the library? Hear tell there are some fine young men hanging around there lately."  
  
Ami smiled as she noticed the embarassed looks on various young girls' faces that indicated they'd heard the same rumors. Actually, watching the young engineers boyhunting might be just the thing. "Let's go. We can bring your grandkids along to fetch us something to drink."  
  
~~~~~~~~  
  
Ami blinked. "That was..."  
  
"Same names. Different individuals," assured Fess. "Except for you, of course."  
  
Kumori Mizuno considered her daughter and what she'd just seen. So in a previous lifetime, her daughter had married this boy. Now he was still a dragon but she was a magical girlscout, though not very good from her earlier showing. Her concerns about having her daughter end up in a relationship with an alien prince/dragon were slightly eased. Though it appeared Ami's were heightened.  
  
"What happened to that Ukyo?" Hotaru asked.  
  
"Lived another twenty two years. Saw her great grandkids. Her husband Ranma passed on, and she followed him six months later," Fess said. "The whole 'Ranma & Ukyo' love affair - particularly their early adventures and difficulties - became the subject of a series of plays that eventually reached international notoriety. Even a few novels and eventually a TV series. Though they took serious liberties with the latter."  
  
That got some attention. "Was Ami in these novels or the TV series?" Kumori asked for everyone.  
  
As a reply, a scene from a cartoon played in which the now glamorous Ukyo was consoling a somewhat dumpy long haired girl in glasses. "This is how the TV series played it. There were protests, of course. All of the dragons had been sketched or painted during their stay and the actress cast to portray the human Ami looked nothing like those sketches."  
  
The images now playing caused a few gasps. There was a sculpted marble Ami, styled in a Greek fashion and handing off a scroll, looking somehow glorious and elegant despite her near-lack of clothing. "This is how she is most often remembered, the sculpture is of her passing the knowledge of medicine on to mankind." The image shifted to Setsuna, except in her hands were a pot and ladle. "Setsuna, and her gift of the knowledge of herbcraft and tea." The next statue was of Hotaru, an expression of proud defiance on her face, Silence Glaive in one hand and the other held open as if to bar entry. "Hotaru, guardian of the mount." Fess considered showing other statues but decided the others could wait. Though the statues *were* being duplicated elsewhere in the solar system.  
  
"Were there any others among these lives which particularly shaped him?" Hotaru asked. Having difficulties in her own past, she felt that this would help her understand her new sempai.  
  
"Many," acknowledged Fess, bringing up another scene. As Minako had just walked in, with Artemis peeking out of a fold in her purse, Fess decided to try a particular one.  
  
Devastation, in which the figure from the "Amnesia" world walked through a landscape that had been largely obliterated. The figure stopped and began digging a grave at one point.  
  
"This particular world saw the Sailor Senshi fight heroes who were not of the Silver Millenium, and thereby branded as untrustworthy and obstacles by those who wanted to create Crystal Tokyo. The governments of Earth, rival superheroes and devil hunters, even goddesses themselves and those who allied with such - all rose up as Usagi Tsukino began her plans to create her Utopian Kingdom. The battle was... rather intense."  
  
The "camera" panned up and out, and they could see that the burial was taking place in an enormous impact crater. As the point of view went further away it almost looked like a lunar landscape with all the craters overlapping each other. Finally a visible coastline allowed the watchers to place this fractured landscape as being central Japan.  
  
"The ginzuishou is a nearly indestructible, almost omnipotent, power focus. It does have some limitations and drawbacks. The remainder of the Senshi attempted to hold off the forces arrayed against them while Sailor Moon used the ginzuishou to bring about the Great Freeze and eliminate all suffering and poverty by cleansing the hearts of mankind." Fess continued in his dry voice. "There were many who had reservations about such a process and outcome."  
  
Minako seemed to be listening to a nearby whispering voice. "But if Usagi's crystal is so powerful, they wouldn't be able to do anything about it, right?"  
  
"Almost omnipotent is like being almost hit by a truck, Miss Aino. To do such a thing, Tsukino-san must build up the power gradually and control it carefully. In *this* world, there was a group known as the Justice League. While they might have agreed that healing the world would be a good thing, giving the world the choice between permanent exile to Nemesis or becoming "purified" and a commoner in someone else's kingdom? No, they disagreed with that end as well as the means. There was a fight."  
  
The camera zoomed in on a chain of islands.   
  
"North America saw some of the worst fighting. While the various superbeings were fighting, a plan to hit the enemy base was concocted and utilized. Every nuclear weapon capable of making the trip was targetted for the Sea Of Serenity." The camera went up to focus on a jagged edged moon. "In this devastated Earth, there is an empty and lifeless Crystal Tokyo, there are also a few pockets of survivors - mainly in Europe and a few islands which have not been struck by meteorites."  
  
Kasumi crossed herself. Setsuna swore.  
  
On the screen, the wanderer lashed two pieces of wreckage together as a grave marker and began wandering again. "This particular episode was important for him as well. Out of this he learned many new skills and collected a few items that he used in several other 'adventures'. Though one of those turned out rather poorly."  
  
"Worse than that?" Cologne had arrived and indicated the desolate blasted landscape.  
  
"Only on a personal level. Greylle is somewhat of a sentimental person, and one of the DNA samples he collected on this journey led him to one of his little idiosynchrocies." Fess responded back. "You'll notice that while he skirts the edges of it with marionette and ship designs, he does not use genetic engineering technologies."  
  
"Yeah, so?" Minako didn't see the point, though she was still going over the idea that some people might object to Crystal Tokyo.  
  
"He collected Kryptonian DNA from a fallen dog named Krypto, among other sources, and used it to craft a superdog. A companion that would follow him through his adventures and that wouldn't get picked off by a stray disintegration beam or something similarly lethal. In a Shadowrun universe he was a Dog shaman, so it seemed a natural fit." Fess flicked up an image of some scrappy little terrier with a red ball in its mouth, wagging his tail so hard the dog seemed ready to fly just on the force of that. "The experiment was a success. A dog more powerful than most conventional armies, with powers and abilities far beyond those of normal dogs. Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a bullet train, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. The single vulnerability being magic. After three years, one mission took him to Jusenkyo..."  
  
"Oh," said Cologne, understanding instantly. "Jusenkyo tends to pull in the unusual to drown in its pools."  
  
"After that, it took him quite some time to be able to accept any sort of companion during a mission," Fess indicated.   
  
Hotaru's lower lip began trembling. "Poor sempai."  
  
--------  
  
In an old American convertible equipped with antigrav, Ami and her mother left the base, each deep in their own thoughts.  
  
Ami Mizuno, 14 year old cram school student, looked on herself in a whole new light. In a previous life, she had been *married* to a *dragon* and ended up a dragon herself apparently.   
  
Her mother worried about a number of things. Including questions about what kind of grandkids would result. Also what kind of "improvements" and "security upgrades" would be added to *her* car.  
  
Hotaru noted their preoccupation and decided to make a side trip and tell Mizuno-san why she would just have to let it go in this life. Greylle-san already had a fiancee, thank you very much. Time to give someone in *this* life a chance.  
  
-------  
  
Greylle himself was trudging down the street and wondering why he couldn't get any respect. Fess was off on his own agenda. The marionettes didn't have time for him. The Sailor Senshi regarded him either as an enemy or a rival, depending on who you asked. Akane was his student in a martial arts style he didn't really know.  
  
The list went on but it all came down to: his life was a mess.  
  
"At last I have found thee! Foul wyrm, prepare to die!"  
  
Reflexes came online and Greylle brought his trusty baseball bat up to block the attack.  
  
It shattered and the bokken almost sliced into him despite twisting away from the point of impact.  
  
Greylle stared. Tatewaki Kuno was *not* that good. The bat had been enchanted as well as made of hyper-dense materials. Which meant...  
  
The roughly chiseled wooden sword gave the reason. Musashi's bokken - haunted and guided by the spirit of Miyamoto Musashi.  
  
Greylle leapt up, swung onto an awning, and prepared to leap to a rooftop to give him some room. The awning ripped, he fell through, and went through a small table of trading cards. "Crap!"  
  
"Have at thee!" Tatewaki Kuno declared as he charged and swung his bokken at the fallen monster.  
  
------  
  
"This is why you should give up, Mizuno-san," said Hotaru. "I was already Shard-san's iinazuke when I stepped across that boundary. I knew it would cost me, but I decided it was better to do this... He's in danger."  
  
Ami was asking questions, but by the time she'd stammered out the first one, Hotaru had already launched the ancient Thunderbird into the air and was far off.  
  
"Say what you will about their lack of magic, they at least have decent transportation." Kumori Mizuno looked at the vanishing tail-lights in the distance.   
  
Ami stood in the gloom and looked across at the house. There were lights on and the occasional movement. Hard to believe an ancient evil was in there, having warded this place so that if one stepped across the property line you'd become some mindless slave to a dragon!   
  
"Come on, let's see if they'll let us use a phone," said Ami's mother, starting for the house.  
  
"EEEEK! NO!" Ami jumped in front of her mother to stop her. "You mustn't! There's an evil god in there!"  
  
Doctor Mizuno blinked at her daughter. "A what?"  
  
"If you cross the property line, you'll be turned by the magic into that dragon's mindless catgirl pet by the magic of a god of evil!" Ami took a couple of deep breaths to steady herself. "That was close."  
  
"Ami-chan, is this something to do with those doujinshi I found in your room?"  
  
Ami turned beet red briefly. "No! That's not it at all!"  
  
"Hotaru said she had been over there, and I didn't see any signs of tail or ears." Doctor Mizuno considered. "She's a bit young, but her devotion to her fiance might just be a schoolgirl crush. You remember that one you had on Doctor Werube?"  
  
Ami turned beet red again briefly. "Mother, please!"  
  
"Besides, if it was crossing the property line," the doctor said, pointing down.  
  
Ami looked down, she was standing on a line marking the property of the evil god. Hands came up to feel her ears. Normal human ears. She checked for a tail. Nope. Checked her breasts. Were they C instead of A now? No, she couldn't suggest *that* after the doujinshi remark. "Uhm."  
  
Doctor Mizuno had been recently disappointed in her daughter. Shortly after she and her friends been brought back from the dead by a dragon, that dragon had been declared a non-friend at the very least and viewed with nothing but suspicion. (That she could see anyway.) Then they had done rather poorly in their battle against the dirty laundry monster. Now she was making apparently groundless accusations against someone. Though Hotaru *had* corroborated this tale to some extent, from her brief conversations with the young girl, the pediatrician was not inclined to see anything mindless or "pet" oriented about her. And here was her daughter making up stories then patting her own buttocks and examining her own breasts. "Ami. If you are done, I'm going to go use the phone there."  
  
"B-b-but," Ami watched as her mother went up the path, eventually reached the door, knocked, went inside, and came back out after about five minutes. "B-b-but I... that is."  
  
Doctor Mizuno frowned ever so slightly at her daughter. "Somehow I pictured a god of evil to be somewhat less polite. Not to mention less enamored of some gaijin TV program called 'The Simpsons' or to offer me a glass of wine while I made a phone call. Ami. We will talk."  
  
Ami fidgeted. "...but he..."  
  
"Actually she's quite correct in some respects, completely wrong in others, but then she *is* simply a four-dimensional being," came a velvety smooth voice.  
  
"WAAAGGHHHHH!" Ami did a credible Usagi impression, leaping straight up in the air with her hair toinged out, whipping out her henshin pen in mid leap. Unfortunately said pen left her hand and landed somewhere in the shrubbery.  
  
Doctor Mizuno let out a deep breath and hid her eyes. "Ami. Maybe you need a vacation. Without those friends of yours along."  
  
"That's him! That's the god of evil!" Ami pointed at the fellow in the burgandy smoking jacket and trousers. "Get behind me mother!"  
  
Doctor Mizuno raised an eyebrow at the fellow.  
  
"She's been listening to her friends, and they've been exaggerating," explained the god of evil. "Don't return again."  
  
Doctor Mizuno nodded. "Sorry about this then."  
  
The "man" in the smoking jacket returned to his home as Ami stammered.  
  
Doctor Mizuno began planning a vacation for Ami. Something for just the two of them... Perhaps Shard-san had an idea! Certainly he'd be able to come up with *something* exotic or at least save them on transportation costs.   
  
Seeing her pen in the shrubbery, Ami hesitated for a moment. Lights blinking as they approached indicated another ride heading their way would be of the flying sort.  
  
"See mother," Ami said, firming her shoulders and marching across the lawn into the shrubs to pick up her pen. NOW her mother would believe her! She could feel the magic altering her, changing her, turning her into a submissive pet slave.  
  
"See what, Ami?" Doctor Mizuno requested gently of her daughter.  
  
Ami blinked. She wasn't some slavepet? She wasn't mindless? "Uhm..."  
  
"Daughter. I'll start scheduling that vacation."  
  
-------  
  
Ranma was confused. Not abnormal by any stretch of the imagination.  
  
He was a reincarnated princess? Damn, he really really hoped Ryouga never found out. He'd never be able to live it down.  
  
On the other hand, didn't that mean that he had some power up coming to him?  
  
Except that it would probably only be for his girl side. That wasn't good.  
  
Yet wasn't it a tenent of Anything Goes that any advantage should be used?  
  
On the other hand...  
  
Hey, what the heck was going on over there?!  
  
--------  
  
Tatewaki Kuno brought the Musashi Bokken across the dragon again and again. His blows with the wooden sword could shatter stone and were perfect and without peer. The beast sorcerer had been wounded by his matchless prowess.  
  
However, the stubborn beast refused to stand still and perish before his might. It bled profusely, his wooden blade had slashed deep into the human guise of this nefarious being, but it still dared to mock him with its continued survival!  
  
"Okay, Kuno, you want a fight. Here goes!"   
  
Kuno blinked. Nabiki Tendo? *Flying?!*  
  
Nabiki summoned power and made the appropriate gestures. "FLARE ARROW!"  
  
Kuno stared. The bokken, however, neatly deflected the spell.  
  
Nabiki frowned for a second, then grinned. To heck with blackmail and photographs. THIS was power!  
"Spark flare bright,  
Crimson flame alight,  
FIRE BALL!"  
  
*BOOM!*  
  
"Yes!" Nabiki said, exultantly. Until the smoke cleared and Tatewaki Kuno was still standing visible. "Oh."  
  
"Foul witch, you show your true colors! No longer will you stand between the Blue Thunder and his bride."  
  
"SILENCE GLAIVE SURPRISE!"  
  
"dead... scream!"  
  
Tatewaki Kuno ducked one and blocked the other, though his feet dug furrows into the pavement from the impact. "None can stand against me! With this, I am invincible!"  
  
Sailor Saturn took one look at her fiance's injuries, then the face she turned to Tatewaki Kuno was not of a tearful little girl but of Death.  
  
"Oh man, this guy doesn't look so-" *WHAM!* Realizing he had just been thrown *through* a parked van, Ranma decided maybe this was another youma like that moose-guy.   
  
The Silence Glaive came up. "Death Reborn..." A hand stopped the Glaive from dropping.  
  
"No, Hotaru-chan," said Greylle, trying to hold the gut wound closed with one hand long enough for the ginzuishou or natural healing talent to kick in. "Killing yourself taking the bad guy out isn't always a viable solution. i should know."  
  
"So, foul beast. You seduce others to your cause. Know that I shall end thy crimes here!" Kuno lifted the bokken into an eight-strike stance. There were eight seperate attacks he could make from that start.  
  
"Not a chance, Kuno," said an arriving Akane. Then her eyes widened as she took in the scene. Greylle looked cut up pretty badly and had lost a lot of blood (in fact some little corner of her mind put the splash trails as being around three gallons worth - more than should be in a human body), buildings and trees looked sliced open or smashed, the pavement was cratered and even burning in a couple of places, and there was the sound of sirens in the distance. The explosions that had guided her here had been from a fight with *Kuno*?! She charged forward, experience with fighting Kuno should make this quick and easy.  
  
"Illusions now, sorcerer? Be done with them!" Kuno had been able to dominate the sword through his singleminded focus on revenge. Akane's appearance had thrown that off. His bokken swept towards the ground and a line of force smashed Akane with about the same results as Ranma had experienced earlier. Except that she missed the car and went through a store window.  
  
Greylle tried to come up with a solution. Changing into a dragon with these sorts of injuries would likely put him in shock. Not that he wasn't heading there anyway.   
  
Hotaru felt a warm glow within her as she held her unsteady fiance up. She knew from that earlier fight that he trusted her, he liked her, he cared about her. Now if she could just get him to switch from seeing her as a little sister!   
  
*Click KLAK!* "Vat ve haff here is a failure to communicate." *Vrrrrrrrt!*  
  
Tatewaki Kuno began blocking the machine gun fire provided by an ARNIE unit, using the bokken to parry the bullets.  
  
"EXPLOSION ARRAY!"  
  
"Kitty Flash! Pluto Evisceration Slash!"  
  
Saturn, being a miko of Amaterasu, threw ofuda. "Akuryo Taisan!"  
  
ARNIE tried something else. "Rocket Punch!"  
  
"Turn Undead!" Greylle tried.  
  
Musashi's bokken blocked the punch, faltered under the ofuda assault, couldn't parry the area effect of the Array, and was Turned just before Bishoujoneko Pluto's claws sliced through wood and hakama.  
  
"Foul... beast..." Kuno began.  
  
Finally, belatedly, the ginzuishou flared.  
  
---------  
  
Whatever the doctor and her daughter had expected to find when dropping the aforementioned doctor off at her hospital, it had not been this.  
  
Even R2's beeps sounded confused.  
  
"Maybe a youma?" Ami suggested.   
  
"If that's the case, do you want to transform and get the rest of your team?" The pediatrician asked, her usual cool and elegant having taken a severe beating today.  
  
Male doctors and staff were tied up in the hallway, looking as if their energy had been drained. This was familiar enough for Ami to momentarily smile.   
  
On the other hand, female staff and patients were not looking either drained or normal.  
  
Quite a few were in various states of undress, a few were fully clothed but looked oddly out of it. The Nurse's station was occupied by a few who were giggling about something in room E-107.  
  
After trying to get their attention for several moments, the doctor just grabbed the chart for E-107.  
  
Ami peeked over her mother's shoulder. "Patient Higari Katsumatsu. Age: 15. Symptoms: massive crush injury to his... oh my."  
  
Doctor Mizuno read the rest of the SOAP (Symptoms, Observations, Analysis, Plan) sheet. "ER room 107. Subject unconscious through transport from scene. According to witnesses he flashed some young girl who responded by kicking him in the nuts. Apparently she's a martial artist. Hmmm. Regained consciousness while ice was being applied to injury site prior to seeing if detachment had occurred. It stops in mid-sentence here. Ami, why don't you go freshen up in that bathroom over there while I investigate? And maybe you should call your friends and let them know you're here."  
  
Ami shot a grateful look towards her mom. She'd have a chance to prove the Sailor Team was *not* all washed up!  
  
=========  
  
the Hentai Sorcerer's Club concept came to me awhile back. You have libido-charged hyper hentai (always shonen) in series like Urusei Yatsura, Ranma 1/2, Magic User's Club, etc. If they had access to a real book of spells, what do you see them doing? In the clubs here and in Hotaru 1/2, they're fairly pathetic and small time (it's funnier that way) with using powerful spells to: cheat on tests, conjure panties out of girls lockers, try to get themselves a loveslave girlfriend (and then lacking the nerve to actually do anything), or Conquer The World (without actually having much of a clue as to how to do it, or what to do when you've got it, it's just the genre thing to do.)  
  
========== 


	18. chapter 18

Chapter 18, Retake  
  
DISCLAIMER: Various characters belong to various people/companies/agencies/etc. Except them that don't.  
  
--------  
  
Ami transformed in the girls room, becoming Sailor Mercury, and immediately set the "General Broadcast" alert. She expected to just get the other Inners.  
  
MINAKO: "This isn't another pile of dirty clothes is it? Do you *know* what they're saying about me on the radio? 'If Sailor V is going to reappear just to flush her reputation down the toilet, she might as well stay missing.'"  
  
Ami swallowed nervously. "Yes, well..."  
  
USAGI: "My mother asked where I'd gotten these clothes from and what happened to the outfit she'd bought me. I still don't understand how that thing taking our Senshi costumes also got our street clothes."  
  
MAKOTO: "What did you tell her?"  
  
USAGI: "That I was caught in that monster attack on the news and that these clothes were a gift from a friend. Now they all want details on this friend!"  
  
HARUKA: "We're on our way!"  
  
MICHIRU: "I've already called the news. This time we'll emerge triumphant and put all these people in the wrong!"  
  
Ami gasped. "You didn't!"  
  
MICHIRU: "I don't like looking bad in front of an audience!"  
  
REI: "I'm getting a really bad feeling about this."  
  
HOTARU: "Greylle-sempai's pretty badly injured. I'm going to stay here and nurse him back to health... Oh my goodness I can't believe I said that. I mean I really wanted to be a nurse when I grow up and all but still... And he *is* my fiancee so that's kinda all right... I mean..."  
  
HARUKA: (somehow interrupting): "Who the heck was inviting the Senshi Of Death along anyway?!"  
  
SETSUNA: "I also will be tending to the patient's wounds."  
  
HOTARU: "You really should go help them. You saw that fight against the laundry monster. If someone isn't there to clean up their messes the hospital might get totalled."  
  
SETSUNA: "Oh, and I'm just going to leave you alone with Greylle-san?"  
  
HOTARU: "...that obvious, huh?"  
  
REI: "Would you two knock it off, this is Sailor Business!"  
  
MAID UNIT: "Does that mean you don't require fire support?"  
  
HARUKA & MICHIRU: "NO!"  
  
Mercury closed her communicator. She needed to check on her mother anyway.  
  
---------  
  
Higari Katsumatsu was of two minds about this. On one hand, his spells were working again. On the other, he hadn't really intended to get a not particularly attractive nurse with his spell.  
  
"Trellain's Templative Transformation" was a fairly powerful spell. He'd had to work carefully to put it into his wand. Then all he had to do was say what he wanted the target to turn into, and until day's end - the variables that defined an individual would have the value for whatever he specified. Point it at a prince, say "frog", and the prince would be a frog until the stroke of midnight. What he'd been trying for was "loveslave" - something he honestly felt he deserved.  
  
Against that catgirl - not a damn thing. Against a dumpy looking nurse though, it had worked. Pity.  
  
So Higari would admit he'd gotten a little out of hand here.   
  
In order to cover for the not-so-cute one, he'd cast it on a couple of other nurses. Then to avoid suspicion, had ordered them to tie up the doctors. He hadn't meant literally, he'd just meant to keep them busy.   
  
So here he was with an icepack against his privates, having zapped any woman/girl that had poked her nose into his room. He'd remembered "keep a low profile" about halfway through.  
  
The curtain shuffed open and a woman stepped in.  
  
Higari stared. The namebadge said "Dr Mizuno - Pediatrics" but she was *gorgeous*! Elegant and beautiful, lightly made up, and flush as if she'd just been in a fight or something. Her perfect looking mouth parted.  
  
"So you're the one. Do your parents know you've been doing things like this? You should be ashamed of yourself!"  
  
Higari frowned. That had not been what he'd wanted to hear. Ah well, easily fixed. He pointed the wand at this woman. "Loveslave!"  
  
Doctor Mizuno stood with her hands on her hips and glared at this troublemaker. "Who do you think you're calling a loveslave! I don't know what you did to the nursing staff here, but you'd better undo it now!"   
  
Higari felt fear. The spell wasn't working again. Why wasn't it working?!  
  
"D-Doctor Mizuno! Leave this to us!" A girl in a blue skating outfit came in behind the Doctor.  
  
"Hospitals are for healing of the sick," announced a girl in a red-white-blue skating outfit.  
  
"Whereas what you're doing is just plain sick," announced another girl, crowding the doctor aside.  
  
"Oh let's just moondust this jerk," said a shorthaired blonde in a similar costume.  
  
"Sailor Team, we're here to stop you!" Another girl sentai posed.  
  
"Sailor Senshi? I've heard of you," said Higari. "Oh wow."  
  
Several of the Senshi visibly preened. See, their reputations weren't destroyed!  
  
"Your skirts really *are* that short!" Higari continued. "Are you gonna disrobe now like you did against the clothing monster? They had it on TV earlier."  
  
Preening turned to disgusted.   
  
Higari smiled. Perfect. He snapped his fingers. "Come my slaves, stop these wicked wenches from hurting me!"  
  
The curtains to the room flew up and a crowd of mostly undressed women and young girls rushed the Sailors.  
  
"HEY!" Sailor Venus exclaimed. "Watch what you're grabbing you hentai!"  
  
"I'm a nurse dearie," said that one, pulling a long tube out of somewhere. "Time for your enema!"  
  
"EEEEP! Sailor V KICK!" She was opposed to hurting civilians, but some things were too much to bear!  
  
Higari smirked. Everyone was busy. Time to try this out on these Senshi. If *this* worked then he'd take his new slaves and become Chief Sorcerer of the club! "Loveslave!"  
  
--------  
  
"Oh man. i haven't done this bad against a kendoist since that little mess on timeline XS-420170," Greylle complained.  
  
Hotaru schooled her face into a stern expression. "Don't move! We've got to get these bandages in place."  
  
Setsuna smiled and held up a bucket and a sponge.  
  
Hotaru shook her head. She didn't think mentioning a sponge bath would get the patient to relax at this point. As to the nurse's outfits they were both wearing, what was up with the long skirt she had and Setsuna's short one?  
  
Setsuna smiled. Her career as a fashion designer was assured as long as she hung around the Dragon Prince. Who else would have such interesting programs and machines that would let her design and manufacture clothing *this* easily? Or... she could betray the dragon, go back to Serenity, get the Geas reinstated, and then give up these reclaimed dreams in order to be the lonely guardian of the Gate Of Time.   
  
Yeah, right.  
  
"So, uhm, what was XS- 4..." Hotaru tried to remember and gave it up as a lost cause.  
  
"Crossover timeline, multiple factors. The 4xxxxx code means it gets weird." Trying to relax and letting them play with the medical equipment (besides it hurt to move) Greylle tried to figure out how to tell these two when they didn't know anything about Yggdrasil, the RRO, or alternative timelines. "There was this universe where several high schools decided to remove their violent or delinquent students and ship them to a single high school where they could deal with each other."  
  
"Like Ranma or Akane?" Hotaru suggested.  
  
"Exactly, in fact there were several from Furinkan there." Greylle smiled in rememberance. "I was still that lowpowered incubus back then. Man, that was a mess. Daimon Senior High School."  
  
"Daimon?" Setsuna repeated.  
  
"Yeah. There were students from Gateway, Ohtori Academy, Juuban 'Crossroads', Furinkan, Kolkhoz - all sorts of fighters and magical girls and devil hunters and all sorts of other problem students." Greylle let out a deep breath. "Plus there were guys from Daimon itself. Nobody was a slouch there. As far as anime series, that would be 'Combustible Campus Guardess', 'Real Bout High School', 'Revolutionary Girl Utena', some of the Senshi from 'Sailor Moon', a number of heavy hitters from 'Ranma 1/2', Riki 'Tigermask' Hyoudo from 'Battle Royal High School', Ayane Mitsui from 'Ayane's High Kick', Yohko and Ayohko from 'Devil Hunter Yohko', Sakura from 'Street Fighter', there was more but you get the idea - a real mess."  
  
"Oh? What were you doing there?" Setsuna calmly began sewing up a jagged flesh wound and wondered how the boy could even talk with that kind of mess. Hotaru saw the injury, turned pale, and sagged onto a chair.  
  
"Investigating. The fighting had been constant but it was always to defeat or knockout. Something happened that escalated the level of violence considerably. Turned out to be a Demon First Class named Velsper."  
  
"You fought a kendoist there?" Setsuna asked while placing a knot.  
  
"Not intentionally. Makes Tatewaki Kuno look like Hikaru Gosunkugi. Girl by the name of Ryoko Mitsurugi, real samurai warrior wannabe. LOTS better at fighting. Yeah, that one was... a mess..."  
  
"He's asleep," said Setsuna after checking.  
  
"Poor sempai," mumbled Hotaru, holding her fiance's hand and trying to channel healing energy.  
  
"Hey now, none of that, he's got to get a break between magical healings so his body can recover resources." Setsuna reminded the girl, though gently. "Maybe we ought to see how the Sailor Senshi are doing in the meantime."  
  
"Don't you think they can handle it?" Hotaru asked, then read the expression. "Okay. Fess-san! Please monitor his condition and let us know if anything goes wrong."  
  
--------  
  
Kumori Mizuno had struggled through High School, through a marriage that had gotten her stonewalled from her family, the seperation when her artist husband had gone off to pursue his "starving artist" lifestyle, and raising a daughter on her own. She had gotten through medical school, internship, and setting up her practice in a land where gender roles were pretty strict. These were pretty much true of any near-baseline Sailor Moon timeline.  
  
In this particular one, she'd also been a minor member of a secret organization known as AEGIS in 1969 during her first year of high school.  
  
In either case, "weak" was not an accurate description.  
  
"This is *enough*," said the Doctor as she watched her daughter doing tricks for this pervert boy. "Gate. OPEN!"  
  
*FWAM!*  
  
Two icy-blue concentric circles formed in midair near her outstretched hand. If you looked closely you could see the same counter-rotating circles in her eyes.  
  
"What?!" The Senshi that weren't grovelling at this boy's feet were rather shocked. So was the boy.  
  
"Aren't you too old to be a Senshi?" Higari asked. "Girls, restrain her."  
  
It hadn't been enough of a Gate ability to get her a Gatekeeper position, she'd ended up a bridge bunny on the night shift. Of course, she wasn't exactly a 15 year old kid anymore either. Not nearly what Kaoru's Gate Of Pursuit or Megumi's Gate Of Protection could do. Still, all of the Senshi were about to get their first sexual encounter and as the adult present - she wasn't going to stand for it if there was anything she could do. "Gate Of Spirits. GENMAKEN!"  
  
"What was... that..." Higari's voice trailed off as the "Fist Of Nightmares" manifested. "Oh dear kami. AAAAAAAAA!"  
  
The Senshi, nurses, patients, and pretty much everyone else on that floor likewise gave into screaming until they were hoarse.  
  
Except for Doctor Mizuno, who simply walked up and took the sparkly wand away from the boy before he could recover. Followed by her running off with the villain's prop.  
  
Because, just as you couldn't say that Doctor Kumori Mizuno was weak, she also wasn't an idiot.  
  
------  
  
Hotaru and Setsuna looked at each other in the gloom as the car (a 1969 Ford Mustang with anti-grav plating) settled into the parking lot near a police cordon around the building.  
  
"Looks like the news crews are here too," said Setsuna.  
  
Snoopy wurfed and brought up a display.  
  
"One of the channels has gotten someone into the security monitor room? Oh that *is* bad." Setsuna tsked. "Well, how do you think we ought to handle it?"  
  
Hotaru triggered a change. "Saturn Kitty Power, FUR up!" She made a gesture with her long claws. "Better nightvision and reflexes."  
  
"Not to mention stealth." Setsuna nodded, knowing darn well that their catgirl modes didn't actually require an activation phrase. It just didn't seem right though to just transform without *something.* "Pluto Kitty Power, Transform."   
  
-------  
  
When she had been younger, the Gate Of Spirits had been a tiny effect. The Genmaken, the Nightmare Fist, caused one to momentarily face something frightening from the target's own mind and memories.   
  
Not only was she older and more experienced than the young bridge bunny from 1969, she had just gotten a power upgrade she didn't fully know about yet. The same one that had given her immunity to Higari's transformation spell. Compared to the power level of the binding already on her, that spell had been unnoticeable.   
  
So Kumori Mizuno, MD, sensibly ran off. With the magic wand that had been used against her daughter among others.  
  
Higari however was reliving every rejection, every put down, every beating he'd ever gotten from women. The absolute hopelessness that was his normal day to day existence.   
  
Still, as bad as that was, his victims were having a worse time.  
  
------  
  
In television sets across Tokyo, people got disgusted with the Sailor Senshi *again* falling down on the job. Though the strip tease had been nice for the young male crowd.  
  
On the other hand, seeing "Super Doctor" use a power and then do exactly what the color commentators had been urging somebody to do was sitting very well with the audience.  
  
A flying car? Two cute catgirls racing to the rescue? All caught by a newschopper?   
  
People were already beginning to organize fanclubs.  
  
------  
  
Aware that the news people had already tapped into the video feed, Kitty Saturn and Kitty Pluto turned on a vidcam remote drone and had it follow them. Once there, the two nodded. This was Japan, they were superheroes, certain sentai elements were demanded if they were going to be on camera.  
  
*SLASH!* A section of wall came apart in nice even strokes. From the dust a looming form with really darn long hair and lashing tail. "From the coldest and loneliest planet, I am the elegant Kitten of Solitude & Contemplation. Kitten Pluto!"  
  
While the various loveslaves continued retching from the earlier Gate attack, the curtains abruptly exploded into thin strips. One strip came down over the new arrival's head, and she as quickly removed it. "From the ringed planet of splendor, I am the cute Kitten of Nursing &, uhm, something besides destruction... Kitten Saturn!"  
  
Taking a spare wand out, Higari pointed it at the dangerous looking one. "Sexpet!"  
  
*SLASH!* (clatter)  
  
Kitten Pluto sneered at Higari (especially effective with the prominent sharp-looking teeth) over the little sliced segments of wand. "Foolish pervert! We are immune to such petty magic!"  
  
"Yeah?" Higari wasn't ready to surrender yet. "Slaves! Attack these two!" Various nurses and Senshi tried to respond.  
  
Pluto and Saturn smiled.  
  
"Villains like this are *so* predictable," Pluto remarked.  
  
"Too bad we don't have a magical attack," lamented Saturn. "All we can do is fight hand-to-hand. Oh. You two are the ones who were calling for my death earlier, weren't you? Kitty Take Down Attack!"  
  
Higari saw his Sailor Slaves getting beaten up and he was out of wands. Time to escape!  
  
------  
  
"The *real* Sailor Senshi are here," announced Sailor Marionette Uranus. The entire marionette team had assembled. Of course, some extra marionettes had come along because they wanted to get in on this. Which was why there was not only the regulars (Mercury, Venus, Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto) but a few extras (Sailor Vulcan - one of the Rei Ayanami units, Sailor Maid, Sailor Nurse, Sailor Proxima Centauri (one of the supermodel units), Sailor Masked Catgirl (the Sakura catgirl unit), and Sailor Barbie) along as well.  
  
Higari stopped and pointed back where he'd come. "But... they..."  
  
The android waved off the point. "Minor stand-ins. Useful but did you really think the *real* Senshi could be subverted so quickly?"  
  
"Uhm. You do have a point there," agreed the hentai sorcerer.  
  
"No, we're the real Senshi!" Sailor Uranus said, running out of the hospital.  
  
"Oh, we'll prove it then. As you know, all real sentai teams have a number of accessories and different outfits so that they can be properly merchandised!" Marionette Uranus proclaimed. "URANUS ARMOR-UP!"  
  
Hidden speakers began playing an instrumental version of the BubbleGum Crisis song "Blow Up" as the other marionettes likewise responded with their "Armor-Up" commands, pirouette and pose as armor snapped into place around them.   
  
Higari started sneaking off. He was going to be caught in a fire fight here? No way!  
  
"Saturn! Ring Toss Capture!"  
  
Higari gulped as glowing rings dropped into place around him. "Oh dear."  
  
Having changed from catgirl to Senshi, Sailor Saturn was smiling at her powerup. Nothing to do with death or destruction and it let her catch bad guys! Pose, peace sign, smile at camera. "Ushering in a new age! Sailor Saturn!" Wink. Pose.  
  
The marionettes, seeing their presence was no longer mandated, went in to see about their originals. They found most of them tied up and stuck out of the way immediately.  
  
Pointing the business end of her staff at Higari and letting green crackling discharges of energy show, Sailor Pluto looked particularly menacing. "Ending the insult of those who pervert the very concepts of love and justice. Sailor Pluto. You *don't* want me to show you what my new attack - 'Pluto death sniper' would do to you, do you villain?"  
  
Higari shook his head very rapidly in a negative fashion. He didn't know what it would do, but it sounded nasty as all get out.  
  
"Then perhaps you should consider removing your spell," suggested Pluto.  
  
"I can't. I'd need my wand to do that!"  
  
*crackle* *crickle* *BOOM!*  
  
Seeing a smouldering crater three feet wide and he didn't know how many feet deep open up in front of him, Higari practically wet himself. "But the transformation ends at midnight and I can't really do anything else now anyway..."  
  
"Got that out in one breath," said Saturn, admiring lung capacity if nothing else.  
  
Uranus shook her fist and stalked forward. "How dare you threaten our Master! You are not worthy of even speaking to him! WORLD SHAKING!"   
  
"Saturn." Pose, spin, hold Glaive up, spin it around briefly, down. "Wave." The end of the Glaive glowed and formed a disc of light. "Motion." The World Shaking hit the disc and splashed harmlessly to the sides. "Gun."  
  
"AAAAAAA!" Uranus said, picturing her atoms beings streamed layer by layer off her bones in "Star Blazers/Space Cruiser Yamato" fashion.  
  
"Healing Version, one tenth power!" finished Sailor Saturn with a flourish.  
  
"You get Wave Motion Gun as your new Ultimate Attack?" Sailor Pluto sounded envious as they watched the sphere of energy lock onto Sailor Uranus and begin chasing her around the parking lot. "My major attacks are dead scream, death sniper, Tempus Fugit, and death dance."  
  
Saturn shrugged. "Oh well. Can you speed up time on the Senshi so that midnight comes faster for them?"  
  
"I don't think that'll work, magic isn't always logical, but I'll give it a try."  
  
One of the marionettes stuck her head out of the hospital. "Has anyone seen Sailor Mercury? I mean the other one."  
  
-------  
  
Various watchers weren't quite sure what to make of this. Which was the real Sailor Team? What of the two catgirls? Magical girl power armor?! And who were those two Catgirls and what was their connection to the Senshi? What was the connection of Saturn to Space Cruiser Yamato? Could someone get some better pics of those catgirls? How about those first Senshi that had been doing the strip tease?  
  
The TV announcer to suggest this was immediately beaten over the head with a cue card by his co-anchor for being a putz.  
  
-------  
  
Doctor Mizuno tossed her daughter in the back of the convertible. "To that house we were at earlier."  
  
R2 whooped and buzzed - inquiring if the doctor had noticed she had a tail and cat ears.  
  
"Later R2. If she's been enchanted to be turned into some pervert kid's mindless slave, a stronger enchantment will override it."  
  
R2 allowed that was so and tootled a tentative agreement.  
  
"Did you see how they fought against those marionette versions or dealt with my attack? They were even worse off than against the laundry monster."  
  
R2 couldn't find anything to disagree with *there* either. Weren't these supposed to fade at midnight though? That was only four hours away, wouldn't it be better to wait?  
  
Doctor Mizuno wished that R2 would just say something instead of making all those synthesizer sounds.  
  
------  
  
The old President had been ousted. The Vice President had been ousted. The First Lady couldn't be impeached from office but there were proceedings on *that* going on anyway.  
  
In fact, there were darn few in the three branches of American government who looked to survive the Day Of Truth with careers intact. Most of those who were able to, were currently secluded. It was not a happy time in the United States government.  
  
Perhaps because of this, it was the Australians who first detected it. Followed by the Canadians, and followed by most private astronomers.   
  
Except for the French, but most civilized nations knew better than to trust the French anyway.  
  
However, most of the governments kept quiet about the whole thing. These might have been the ones who'd done that nasty to the USA government. In which case nobody wanted to tick them off any further.  
  
An asteroid was going to hit the Earth.  
  
Then it was upgraded to a small rogue moon.  
  
Then the various viewers started getting a real handle on the size of the Intruder.  
  
------  
  
Fess had detected the hyperspatial emergence and recalibrated instruments and run a general diagnostic on seeing the results of the initial scan.  
  
Speed: 1/4c and decelerating.  
  
Length: 19 miles. Width: 118 miles. Depth: 12 miles.  
  
An asteroid of that mass and speed hitting the Earth would be rather like using a mortar round on a watermelon. Very messy and you'd have trouble finding anything left of the watermelon.  
  
Except that it was slowing down and had regular faces. Also wings which must be for decorative functions since there was no way it could be used for atmospheric travel.  
  
Not an asteroid. A ship.  
  
Fess calculated current trajectory and deceleration rate. Lunar orbit in three days.  
  
Time for some preparations.  
  
------  
  
There were things about Ranma Saotome that varied from timeline to timeline. There were other things that were *usually* true about Ranma no matter what else might be different about him and his situation.  
  
Ranma Saotome didn't like to lose - normal. It didn't matter if it was scholar Ranma from timeline RN-LH-201301 or a martial artist Ranma as in RN-100010 or a superpowered mutant as in RN-X-209177.   
  
Now the whole idea of reincarnation was not a new one to Ranma - most Japanese are "born Shinto but die Buddhist" and in the meantime are largely nonreligious, except for the ceremonies and festivals. While he still had significant problems with the idea of being a reincarnated princess of some Earth kingdom from 10,000+ years previously, it was neither the royalty nor the reincarnation parts that disturbed him. The idea of some grand destiny laid upon his shoulders didn't bother him that much either - for one thing it meant all the crap he'd taken in his life had some Purpose behind it.  
  
Ranma was pondering all of this, and trying to figure out *what* he wanted to do. Be some prince of some ancient kingdom, and then he could do something about the mess his life consisted of. Fight the good fight and all that sort of crap.  
  
"Penny for your thoughts."  
  
"WAAAAAA!" Ranma knew darn well that he had been alone on this rooftop a minute ago. "How did you..?! Nevermind. I don't wanna know."  
  
"Suit yourself," said Morgana. "I just wanted to see this 'Earth Princess' for myself."  
  
Ranma glared at the strange woman. "Don't call me that."  
  
"Well?"  
  
"Well - what?!" Ranma sulked. Try to get his head clear by finding the highest rooftop available and it didn't matter - the nutcases still found him.  
  
"Oh. You want to be alone?" Morgana asked the "princess."  
  
"YES, DAMN IT!"  
  
"Fine," said Morgana, raising a hand and causing Ranma to dissolve in sparkles. "Typical spoiled princess. Ha. Oh well, maybe that'll cool him off some. Ha ha ha ha! Damn, it's been way too long since I've cut loose."  
  
-------  
  
"What?!" Ranma exclaimed on suddenly finding himself twenty feet up over a snowbank.  
  
*POOF!*  
  
Climbing *out* of the snow, Ranma said something uncomplimentary about all the crazy chicks in his life and wondered "Where the hell am I now?!"  
  
Thousands of miles to the North, Ryouga sneezed.  
  
-------  
  
R2 whooped and buzzed, indicating that getting the car running again would take a few minutes.  
  
Kumori Mizuno was many things in many timelines. In most timelines she was the pediatrician physician mother of Ami Mizuno, whose marriage to a wandering artist type had ended in seperation. In a few she had different personal names. In quite a few, she ended up one of those who would not give up her individuality and was exiled to Nemesis with all those who would not accept "purification" at the hands of Usagi Tsukino/Neo-Queen Serenity.  
  
In *one* timeline she was actually Morgana Le Fey. In another, Ami's mother was a Chinese Amazon who had left the village ages ago. In yet another timeline, Ami's mother had married an irresponsible slob of martial artist named Genma Saotome and Ami had a brother named Ranma. Another timeline had Ami's mom marrying an American and after several years of marriage in that country returning to Japan with her daughter to try and keep Ami away from those hentai American boys.  
  
In *one* timeline at least, in 1969 she had been a member of AEGIS (Alien Exterminating Global Intercept System) Far East Branch. She had seen the Gatekeepers off on their missions, her own Gate ability ineffective against those Invaders. The Gate Of Spirits only worked on those with a conscience to bother. She had watched from her "bridge bunny" position as Shun Ukiya, Rurippe, Megumi, Kaoru, and even Reiko had fought the evil Invaders again and again.  
  
Therefore, in *this* timeline, it was somewhat gratifying that her own daughter was a member of her *own* generation's sentai team. Fighting off menaces not that dissimilar from the Invaders.   
  
"Mom! I'm okay now, you can untie me!"  
  
Of course, she'd have been a lot more pleased if Ami's track record was a little better.  
  
First the Sailor Suited Warrior Of Love & Exams had not done terribly well against the Dark Kingdom. Yes, they'd succeeded against the bad guys, but coming home at the end of your grand adventure was a definite plus. Then the laundry monster. Now some child throwing spells around.  
  
"MOTHER!"  
  
"Ami, you're still under the influence of that boy's spell."   
  
"No, seriously, I'm fine! It's worn off."  
  
Kumori Mizuno let out a deep breath. Having children was exhausting.   
  
"Uhm, by the way, Mother. Did you realize you have cat ears and a tail?"  
  
"Yes, Ami." Kumori shrugged. Greater strength and speed made carrying off one's brainwashed daughter a lot easier.  
  
"...but you weren't affected by that... oh no."  
  
"Yes and no."  
  
"..."   
  
"Yes- I was affected. No - it apparently is not what you think." Kumori's ears flicked. "You might consider changing your affiliation anyway. Your Sailor Team hasn't been doing well lately."  
  
"Just a string of bad luck," protested Ami.  
  
"Hmmm," Doctor Mizuno commented, not sounding convinced.  
  
"Could you at least untie me?"  
  
"Not until you're free of that enchantment."  
  
R2 beeped a long series of interrogatives.  
  
"Go ahead and finish fixing the emitter, R2, we can wait until the vehicle's fixed."  
  
"No! I have to get back to... uhm."  
  
Kumori regarded her daughter. "Ami. Your group was defeated by myself and then by two catgirls. Your team has not been doing well of late. Let me tell you how it was when I was about your age..."  
  
--------  
  
Morgana checked in on a few people here and there.  
  
She'd just put that Saotome boy/girl on a nice segment of Antarctica. Give him time to cool off before she pulled him back.  
  
That fellow Ryouga was even worse. She didn't even bother approaching him. Otherwise she'd admit it would be likely that Ryouga Hibiki would be sitting on a lilypad for the night.  
  
The two catgirls might be fun to hang around with. No, she had enough problems with allergies today. Damn cherry blossoms.  
  
The sulking group of Senshi? No, not hardly. Trying to recapture their lost glory?  
  
That big alien ship heading....  
  
Big alien ship?!  
  
Morgana blinked and checked the Astral. Yes, that was a rather large ship. Oh well. Size wasn't everything. She'd met many a knight who relied entirely on the size of their lance and the strength of their charge. Idiots.  
  
Right now though she was looking for a little fun. Hmmm. Now *they* might do.  
  
-------  
  
Cologne watched the display and tried to put aside the questions about matchups and the little object in her possession to the side for now. "Exactly what is this, Fess?"  
  
Fess turned his main attention from Akane's attempts to move in a 3g field. "Replay requested. Answer to question regarding behavior pattern."  
  
The Elder frowned. "I thought it was a Japanese soap opera."  
  
"Actually it was one of my first assignments after that abbreviated Ragnarok, and i'd never seen 'Love Hina' so i had no idea what to expect."  
  
Cologne looked disapprovingly at the boy. "Should you be moving with those injuries?"  
  
"Dragons heal fast," answered said boy absently. "Though yes, they *do* hurt quite a bit. Fess, are you showing everyone in creation how badly i screwed up on certain missions?"  
  
"Not at all. Cologne's question regarded your potential acceptance of an Amazon alliance," said Fess. "I believe your response here was succinct."  
  
"Oh?" Greylle tried to think of it. "Let's see. That was the one where Keitaro Urashima, 3rd year university ronin, had just been referred to as a 'waste of space' by his true love - Naru Narugesawa and ended up crawling off to try and find something not pathetic about himself. i ran across him on the train and listened to his story, suggested that girl he mentioned in Southern Japan might have been the girl of his past (that's how some of these stories work) and that he was abandoning his duties as manager of a place called Hinata House. He ended up appointing me emergency manager. Which gave me a base of operations while i tended to my *real* reason for being there."  
  
"Who's the girl that just attacked you? Or that girl that's attacking you now? Or *that* girl who's trying to throw things at you?" Cologne, Elder of an Amazon village, wondered what made Japanese women so prone to violence.  
  
"The one i threw onto the roof was Naru Narugesawa, self styled genius student. The one who just got skimmed across the hot spring and into a wall is named Motoko, and the one who threw the rock but didn't dodge very well when it was returned was Kitsune. i think what Fess wanted to point out to you was that when i'm being attacked and people are bellowing death threats, i get rather upset."  
  
Cologne winced as the boy on screen grabbed the attacking swordswoman, took the sword away from her, then proceeded to leave Motoko-shaped indentations on various walls, ceilings, boulders, floors, and some blonde girl who'd not gotten out of the way fast enough by slamming her into said obstacles. "You don't handle such things very well, do you? Heavens, if I had a 10yuan coin for every time someone threatened me?"  
  
Greylle shrugged. "Urashima let people walk all over him. i had just come from extensive combat training from some really sadistic valkyries. Four tenants, three of whom had attacked me while i was trying to get the sliding doors to the bath fixed. Two of which were making death threats. i flattened them, then showed the note Urashima had written for me, then began eviction proceedings. As i explained then - you attack me making death threats, don't be surprised if i take it personally."  
  
Cologne frowned again. Two of the three girls had gone down immediately. The swordswoman had gotten back up despite the pounding she'd received, but had then been beaten up and held underwater until she stopped struggling. If one of her Amazons used the standard initially-hostile approach, they might require lengthy recuperation times. The thing was, there was only one Amazon not currently pursuing someone as a future husband. And that particular Amazon was not one that Cologne could rely on.  
  
On the display - one girl, looking younger than the rest, had fainted. She was carefully picked up and carried into the inn.  
  
Cologne touched the carefully wrapped bundle in her sleeve pocket. It was looking more and more necessary if she were to gain this ally for the tribe.  
  
---------  
  
Cameramen (and women) seemed to come out of the woodwork whenever the supermodel androids went about.  
  
Like the originals, the androids took to the media attention rather like barbeque sauce to a chicken. The chicken might not be happy about it, but it did so very well indeed.   
  
One of the problems was trying to remember to operate within human capabilities. While they continued to modify themselves to human existence, in the case of the supermodel series they were becoming more human inside and out. They still had superhuman levels of strength, reaction time, durability, and sensory abilities - just not as much as a purely robotic version would be.  
  
So they smiled, and posed, and were polite, and tried to lose the paparazzi as soon as was possible. Which would have been a lot easier if they had antigrav generators or something. Roof hopping was possible, but often impractical in the sorts of clothing the originals they'd been patterned on wore.   
  
After seeing one "chick flick" they'd been interested in others. They'd seen three and had formed a loose database labelled: "Activities - Romantic - Event & Response" based on these movies.  
  
Unfortunately, as they quickly determined, there were three types of males they'd encountered since then.  
  
Type 1: temporary nomenclature - "Lounge Lizard" While possessing sufficient confidence to approach one of their number, the individuals in question fit behavior patterns deemed superficial at best to wildly dishonest at the worst. As they *were* androids, this last pattern was not acceptable at all. Currently three units had encountered the more superficial varieties and were attempting to uncover further data.  
  
Type 2: temporary nomenclature - "Geek" While possessing technical knowledge that was usually focussed into narrow channels, the Geek type was prone to some illogical behavior. One, despite the fact that their brain was part of their body and therefore affected by day-to-day activities such as eating and bathing - their dietary patterns and maintenence were poor at best. Two, they seemed to regard any intrusion into their area of specialty as encroachment on some territorial boundary. Three units were investigating further and hopefully some useful data could be acquired.  
  
Type 3: temporary nomenclature - "Professional" Signs of intelligence, narrowly focussed as with the Geek, but also with some degree of being able to maintain basic health on their own. Unfortunately also completely locked within a narrow paradigm and unable to adapt well to changing situations. Sararimen seemed to fit largely within this category or within category "Lounge Lizard." Four units were currently accompanying individuals of this typification and collecting data.  
  
Information was shared within the network. A fourth type was added.  
  
Type 4: temporary nomenclature - "Fixer Upper" Seen within the films, but this was the first physically encountered. In the movie cases the male encountered had some bad habits but showed signs of being able to learn from mistakes and adapt. Many of these were gainfully employed but not all. Some exhibited initial signs of being reluctant to speak to the units, however once engaged in conversation on their area of focus became much more communicative and interested. As this new type seemed the most likely to produce useful information, two units were accompanying the single individual found so far and the remainder of the units began seeking out more of these.  
  
Others among the units simply returned to the base. Construction of ship Arcadia was now a priority due to solar intruder. If necessary, group 4 might need to be relocated to ship Arcadia as a safe zone for further data collection.  
  
-------  
  
For a young man by the name of Takeshi Mori, life had been just a big disappointment.  
  
Never dated a girl in his life. Success had always been just out of his grasp. His academic performance had been nothing special. He was good at a few things, but they were things that had little practical value in real life. His best skill so far had been in art, he could visualize a scene and how things would look best but couldn't quite draw it well enough to become a manga artist.  
  
However, as the evening wore on, he kept pinching himself. This could *not* be happening. Any moment he would wake up and return to his dull and uneventful life of broken dreams.  
  
"...so you think that Princess Himiko, who began the unification process of Japan in c. 200 AD, was actually Korean," said someone who looked a lot like some gaijin lingerie model.  
  
"Yeah, there isn't a lot of hard evidence, but there is *some* to indicate she was probably the leader of a tribal migration from Wa in what is modern Korea now," exclaimed Takeshi, "maybe a kind of High Priestess according to some of the Chinese documents dating from the middle of that century."  
  
"Fascinating," agreed Takeshi's *other* companion. "Since written Japanese history wasn't established until after 700 AD and was spotty then, by which time the mythos had already been developed for political self-validation, you'd mainly *have* to rely on outside accounts - which would tend to be slanted by their own viewpoints and agendas."  
  
"Yes, well," Takeshi stalled while wondering when he was going to wake up. Two girls?! Both of whom had that exotic gaijin beauty, perfect makeup, perfect clothing, perfect bodies?! Nineteen years of *nothing* and now this?! "History is written by the winners, you know. Usually."  
  
"You appear to be getting increasingly uncomfortable," noted the first one. The stares directed towards their table probably were a contributing factor. "Would a change of location to a more private one serve to set you more at ease?"  
  
Takeshi tried to will his heart to stop beating so loudly. Had she just suggested...  
  
"Indeed, a quieter location would probably be beneficial," seconded the second one.  
  
"M-m-m-my apartment is nearby," weakly suggested Takeshi who was wondering if he could even stand right now. His legs felt awfully weak.  
  
"Excellent," said the second one.  
  
"If you don't mind then," seconded the first.  
  
Takeshi Mori was right. His knees *wouldn't* support his weight. With the two helping him though, he could manage. And wonder how in the world he was going to thank the kami for being carried between two girls like *this.*  
  
---------  
  
The American government had been built on a series of checks and balances.   
  
This said, those founding fathers had never foreseen some of the changes and technological advances that had occurred since their compromise system had been put together.   
  
Still, it did have self-correcting elements. When most of those in power had admitted scandal, wrong doing, outright criminal activity, immoral activities, or done things that otherwise caused the public at large to become more hostile towards them, others rose up to replace them.  
  
Investigations were called for, committees organized, long winded oratories delivered.  
  
Things were returning to normal scant days after everything had fallen apart.  
  
Though at certain top levels, the news of the aliens held responsible for this heading in on a ship big enough to hold a doomsday fleet was viewed with some concern. On the one hand, it was widely believed that if they could do *that* then what had occurred was simply a warning. People forced to tell the truth for one day in one major city was negligible to what various scientists were extrapolating based on speed, deceleration rate, and mass.  
  
The scientists advised not attacking until you were darn sure they were hostile - because once you did attack you guaranteed they were hostile.  
  
The military advised not attacking until they knew what they were facing and had the supply lines in place, besides it was 1992 and they'd just started taking massive lay-offs and downsizing.  
  
The career politicians were advising not to do anything because they were still either making use of the new vacancies or trying to shift blame off of themselves.  
  
The media was covering the appearance of some new supermodel lookalikes in Japan.  
  
The movers and shakers behind the scenes were investing in handguns and canned foods.  
  
And otherwise, life went on as usual.  
  
-------  
  
Morgana looked around. Harry was obviously researching these kids and their spells. What kind of idiots were running amok here?  
  
"Really, I'm fine. You don't have to do this." Ami protested.  
  
"She's right, NOW," said Morgana as she removed the spell. "A templative transformative? How pathetic."  
  
Ami blinked. Blinked again. "oh... Can I get some mouthwash? Please?"  
  
Doctor Mizuno smiled. "NOW I know you're out of it, Ami. Welcome back."  
  
Morgana conjured a quick bottle of Listerine X-Tra Strength and passed it to the Senshi. "The spell broke apart on reaching you, Mizuno-sensei. Do you know why?"  
  
"A stronger enchantment was already in place," said the doctor matter of factly as her daughter gargled.  
  
"Do you know what that enchantment *is* by any chance?" Morgana asked as Ami tried to sterilize her mouth by repeating the procedure.  
  
The doctor considered telling Ami that she was overreacting for kissing some boy's shoes. Doing the gargle/rinse/spit into a ditch routine once would have been sufficient. "According to my daughter, something I find difficult to credit."  
  
"Have to give the dragon credit, he knows how his luck on love spells work," said Morgana quietly. "It was fairly open ended and was shaped by Hotaru and Setsuna - and their ideas on what it was. The whole idea was to have 'soldiers of love & justice' dedicated to their Prince - who happens to be that dragon. Add into that their own concepts and interpretations, and you have the current mess. You, Doctor Kumori Mizuno, view the dragon with some affection and a desire to see him expand his operations."  
  
The Doctor's tail arched behind her. "And how am I actually different? I haven't made any secret on how much I want access to his technology, though I do tend to agree with his rationale for keeping it away from the general public."  
  
"Your Gate abilities are stronger, and you can now transform into catgirl and physician," explained Morgana.  
  
A shimmer and Doctor Mizuno was wearing her labcoat and hospital IDs. "You know, this could come in extremely handy."  
  
"Yes, I suppose it would." Morgana gestured towards the house behind them. "Your daughter was within the field of effect earlier but as she neither wanted to reach the house nor be affected - she wasn't. On one level both Hotaru and Setsuna *wanted* to be affected."  
  
"Much like Ami's doing now, standing over there," pointed out Doctor Mizuno to the sorceress.  
  
"Well, I suppose if you just want a powerup, that *might* work too," allowed Morgana.  
  
-------  
  
Looking around, Greylle wondered again if Fess hadn't exceeded the term of "going overboard" here.  
  
Yes, he was stuck in this timeline for the foreseeable future. When one is used to hopping along lines of probability and visiting alternate worlds regularly - this was restrictive. When one has a job in Heaven (well, ok, Asgard) and makes a positive difference regularly in mortal existence, this was sort of a prison sentence.  
  
On the other hand, the glass was also half full. He was still a dragon, still the apprentice of Hephaestus, still a cleric. He was hardly restricted to the resources of, just for example, a poor Moslem girl in Argentina.   
  
He could see how some of this had all started. He had even approved of it at the beginning. A starship certainly increased the scope of one's prison. Having people around who would live as long as he, also some appeal. Having a base of operations and some measure of safety. Also good things. Being able to make a positive difference in his new home - likewise perfectly understandable and something he approved of.  
  
Supermodel replica androids? Martian colonies - ok. Jupiter orbital factories? Interstellar probes? Hinata House? Animeland?  
  
Greylle blinked. "i'm sorry, Cologne-san, i missed that. Events catching up with me, i think."  
  
Cologne blinked owlishly for a moment. "Well enough. I was simply asking about the potential of making use of your former apartment for one or two of my Amazons. As I understand it, you're already paid until the end of the month."  
  
"Sounds reasonable," agreed Greylle. "Though space is not terribly large."  
  
"The matter remains on how I would reimburse you for such a thing," began Cologne.  
  
"Actually Cologne, i was hoping for your assistance in training Akane Tendo. She could benefit from the Bakusai Tenken training, if i read her right."  
  
Cologne's eyes narrowed. "And what do you know of secret Amazon techniques?"  
  
"Not much, other than what they purportedly do," admitted Greylle. "Otherwise I'd do the training myself."  
  
Cologne considered the potential for goodwill versus teaching one of the more well known of their secret techniques.  
  
"Besides, this way your Amazons get to use high gravity strength training, plus you'll be able to use Akane learning a technique into strengthening the Amazon position with Ranma." Greylle smiled at the elder. "You've seen how Ranma is about learning new martial arts - he could be quite the asset to your tribe."  
  
Cologne nodded, seeing the point. "Yes, that might work. Though you weren't going to do anything with that apartment anyway so the cost to you is nonexistent."  
  
Greylle shrugged.   
  
"I suspect that you're a softie anyway," suggested Cologne with a gesture towards the display. "You didn't evict any of the girls in the end. Though you *were* pretty rough with that kendoist."  
  
"She kept attacking me," said Greylle. "She set the rules. i attack back."  
  
Cologne smirked as the scene showed the little girl who had fainted pleading that the three others not be evicted. A weak point that could be exploited? Perhaps.  
  
--------  
  
Soun startled as the shrine in his dojo abruptly fell over. "Hmmm. A bad omen."  
  
"Buqiii," said Genma.   
  
A mirror shattered. Soun started worrying. "I hope nothing has happened to my little girls."  
  
"Where are your girls anyway, Soun old boy?"  
  
"Why they're..." Soun turned pale. That hadn't been Genma's voice. "No. It couldn't be."  
  
"SQUEEEEEEEEEE!" A little black pig caught back up with Soun and saw who else was here.  
  
"Genma? You look a bit different somehow. Same beady little eyes though."  
  
Slowly, stiffly, Soun turned. Then looked down.  
  
"Is that any way to greet your old Master?"  
  
--------  
  
Fess listened to R2's transmission and added a third mecha.  
  
Ranma was in the furo trying to get warm again after crossing a glacier.  
  
Sayuri was already asleep, dreaming of a normal life not complicated by jetbikes or power armor or crazed martial artists.  
  
A girl named Motoko in a place named Hinata House got this horrible chill up her spine and decided an extra workout the next day would help purify her. Which has absolutely nothing to do with the main story.  
  
The Hentai Sorcerer's Club, having viewed the defeat of their fellow, realized that their single previous success had been in using a powerful minion monster. Which was why they spent the entire night getting ready to summon the next Beast.  
  
Soun called the base from the number Kasumi had left and advised his daughters to stay over there for tonight at least.  
  
SETI took the measure of that big rock heading their way, noticed the straight edges, and began frantically beaming signals at it while trying to confirm the images being received.  
  
Aiel and Anne took stock of the situation and decided there was too much competition for this world and left to find another one, completely derailing the entire Doom Tree saga.  
  
With no future Crystal Tokyo finalized yet, the future was too much in turmoil to produce timetraveling menaces like the Black Moon family. Therefore those menaces were also likewise not going to show up and begin ridiculous attacks involving blackband magical manifestations.  
  
Ami Mizuno received a stern talking to from her mother, and was grounded for the next two weeks. Permission to go off to save the world was allowed however.  
  
And so the world turned.  
  
========= 


	19. chapter 19

Retake chapter 19 "Bases Loaded"  
  
DISCLAIMER: some char and places by other authors. Rest of this mess by Gregg Sharp.  
  
  
At Furinkan Senior High School, at Juuban Middle School, at Mugen Gakuen, at a certain base under Furinkan - tension was rising.  
  
That was because after the past few days, nothing strange had happened - which was itself strange.  
  
So everyone was waiting for disaster to hit. Tatewaki Kuno hadn't been seen since getting a full power blast from the ginzuishou had caused him to fall over. The nice young men in the clean white coats had come to take him away. (Ha Ha.)  
  
Oh, *some* things were different.  
  
Ranma was sneezing a lot and mumbling about "damn uncute sorceresses" for some reason.  
  
Yuka had parked her motoslave on the top of the clock tower and had had to be paged to move it.  
  
Still, those were insufficient and nerves were fraying by the time school let out because they all had realized they'd been getting used to *something* happening daily.  
  
"THERE'S A MONSTER IN JUUBAN!"  
  
Which was why so many people greeted this news with relief.  
  
--------  
  
At least until the Senshi arrived on the scene.   
  
This time they'd done things a bit differently. Instead of charging blindly in, they had chosen to approach slowly and gather information. (You can guess whose idea that was.)  
  
Sailor Moon's reaction was perhaps typical of young magical girls confronted with this sort of thing. "No. Please... no."  
  
"Big," said Sailor Jupiter.   
  
Sailor Mercury clicked her visor on. "902 feet tall. Oh dear."  
  
"KrrrrreeeeeeeeEEEEAGH"  
  
Sailor Uranus looked appropriately disgusted. "Those aren't hairs are they? Those are tentacles."   
  
Brief silence.  
  
"We're Middle School Japanese girls. That's a tentacle monster. Ain't going near it," summed up Sailor Venus.  
  
"C'mon, we can do it," said Uranus with uncertainty in her voice.  
  
"Yeah," said Jupiter not sounding at all convinced herself.  
  
"THAT big?!" Venus indicated. "My Crescent Beam isn't gonna bust a pimple on something that size!"  
  
The Senshi looked over at that mound of writhing "hair" 902 feet tall.  
  
"Maybe we can get that 'fire support' on this one?" Jupiter suggested.  
  
---------  
  
Nabiki gently glided to the roof of the building and dropped Akane before she turned to survey the monster. Conclusion: big sucker.  
  
"Wind, crimson flame,  
Grant the power of thunder to my hand!  
DIGU VOLT!"  
  
Lightning flared from Nabiki's outstretched palm to score the monster's hide. Not very effectively, but even Akane managed to look impressed.  
  
"East winds that blow,  
Have you as their source,  
Into my hands,  
Ignite all their force!  
FLARE ARROW!"  
  
"Maybe something with a bigger boom," suggested Akane as this spell also seemed too small to be effective.  
  
"Lina didn't think I could do this in this world, so let me try-" Nabiki began making the movements.  
  
"Darkness beyond twilight,  
Crimson beyond blood that flows,  
buried in the stream of time,  
that's where your power grows!  
DRAGON SLAVE!"  
  
Nothing happened. Since Shabranigdo didn't exist in this world, neither would a spell invoking him, even if Nabiki had gotten it right.  
  
"I don't think it worked," observed Akane.  
  
"True," admitted Nabiki. "I don't think I've got a spell strong enough to hurt something that size."  
  
"Oh well, maybe the Senshi will do better," said Akane, taking a seat to watch things develop.  
  
"There are news crews out, they'd better," agreed Nabiki.  
  
-------  
  
"Well, there *is* a way we can fight that," pointed out Setsuna.  
  
"How? And why haven't you transformed to Sailor Pluto or do you think you can fight that as a catgirl?!" Sailor Uranus didn't really like this. Getting close into a fight with *that* she liked even less though.  
  
"Not quite. I think those Guardians Fess provided are what this situation requires. Ami, you joined us last night. Hotaru, are you ready?"  
  
Sailor Mercury transformed back to Ami Mizuno. She tapped a bracelet thoughtfully and nodded. Not how she would have preferred breaking the news.  
  
The other Senshi stared for a moment at the bracelet on Ami's wrist.   
  
"They got Ami-chan too, it's like 'Invasion Of The Body Smackers'," said Venus. "Stripped and helpless as... actually you weren't exactly helpless when you belted me yesterday were you?"  
  
Various winces as the memories of being under that kid's control versus the short precise violence of catgirls Saturn and Pluto the previous day.  
  
Setsuna touched one of her ball-shaped earrings and the two pieces of jewelry blurred and seemed to pour like liquid to form a similar one on her own wrist just visible underneath the cuffs of her maid outfit. Hotaru looked pleased as could be as she revealed her own bracelet similar to the others.  
  
"And *how*," demanded Rei with a gesture towards the size huge monster currently making its way through Tokyo, "exactly is some kind of transforming jewelry going to help us against *that*?!"  
  
Hotaru held her bracelet up and it started glowing. Electric guitars began playing fast and furious with a driving beat behind them from absolutely no source that the Senshi could see. "Senshi Gear ON!" (Vrrrrrreeeeeeeeee!)  
  
"Break through the mundane world,  
Embrace love   
and know the strength of heart!  
Soldiers rise,  
to fight again,  
Now it's time to do our part!"  
  
As the vocals started, Ami and Setsuna had raised their own bracelets and those had begun shining as well. "Senshi Gear ON!" (Vrrrrrreeeeeeeeee!)(Vrrrrrreeeeeeeeee!)  
  
"We are the soldiers of love,  
We strike for truth and happiness,  
Those who fight for love,  
Strike a blow against loneliness!"  
  
Ami, Hotaru, and Setsuna vanished in columns of light. (Blue, violet, and dark emerald respectively.)  
  
"Soldiers unite,  
Fighting for truth,  
Fighting for love,  
Soldiers of light,  
Beyond and above!"  
  
The Sailor Senshi *gaped* at what appeared in the air above them as the music turned to near maniac guitar playing. As for the utter lameness of the lyrics, well, that was in genre too.  
  
"Blue Dolphin, ONLINE!" Somehow giving the impression of crashing waves behind it, the dolphin shaped flying giant robot piroutted.  
  
"Violet Dragonfly, READY!" The darting giant robot posed, giving the impression of a vast storm behind it.  
  
"Jade Owl... standing by." The giant robotic owl posed with the impression of a misty woods behind it.  
  
"..." Sailor Venus tried to get her mouth working again. "They have giant robots?! We stay the Sailor Senshi and we get tiara frisbee action, and *they* get giant robots?!"  
  
"Well, technically, only Sailor Moon can perform a 'Moon Tiara Action', and..." Artemis trailed off as he considered a better way of putting this.  
  
"They have sacrificed their freedom to become mindless sexslaves," insisted Luna. "We must break them free of this evil mind control!"  
  
"They don't *act* mindless," grumbled Venus, "or like 'sexslaves.' This exhales."  
  
"Rurrrraaghhhhhh," said the giant monster as it leapt into the air.  
  
"That is, *after* they've defeated that giant youma," appended Luna, ignoring Venus.  
  
-------  
  
"Scanning," said Ami aboard Blue Dolphin, using the sensitive sonar and sensor systems aboard her ship to get a better picture of their opponent. "Relaying targetting data to your systems."  
  
Aboard Violet Dragonfly, Hotaru nodded. Ami had the superior sensors. Jade Owl had that ability to open teleportative Gates. Her own ship was the nimble and speedy ship. Not much punch, but the most manueverable of the Guardian Robots. "Jade Owl, I'll distract. You and Dolphin attack."   
  
Split screen to show all three. "Roger!"  
  
-------  
  
Watching the darting swift shape of Hotaru's ship dodge everything the giant monster could throw at it while the other two manuevered into position, Artemis could only wonder one thing aloud. "Do you suppose that their maid or bunnygirl costumes give them any special attacks they lack in their sailor costumes?" That he'd really like to see Hotaru in that bunny costume or Setsuna in that maid costume or Setsuna AND Hotaru as catgirls again was not even a consideration for Artemis. He was just professionally curious as an advisor to the Senshi. Really. Cross his heart.  
  
Luna groaned and considered beating her head against a wall as it was obvious that Artemis' head was in the gutter again.  
  
"'Sonic Cannon', huh?" Sailor Venus sat back and watched while munching on popcorn supplied by a Maid unit who had just arrived. "Ami's got a major attack there. Ooooh, *that* has to hurt. What do you suppose that's called?"  
  
"Looks like the wing feathers can cut pretty well," admitted Sailor Jupiter. Not envious in the slightest. Nope. Not her.  
  
Luna looked around. Sailor Moon was paying attention mainly to the bucket of popcorn that Sailor Venus was munching on. Sailor Venus looked tempted, so did Sailor Jupiter. Sailor Mars was glaring at Sailor Moon. Tuxedo Kamen looked disgusted at the battle being raged overhead. Clearly the evil dragon had to be stopped!   
  
--------  
  
"Dolphin! Full power to sonic cannon!" Ami locked her feed onto the magical locus. "Owl, use your feather missiles."  
  
Glowing blue, the dolphin-mecha pointed its snout at the monster. The air shimmered as its sonic attack targetted weak spots.  
  
"Jade Owl, using missiles," said Setsuna. Feathers slashed tentacles from the main mass.  
  
Hotaru piloted the Violet Dragonfly in a darting and weaving aerial ballet. "Tail lasers. On."  
  
-------  
  
Lawn chairs had been provided. Some of the Senshi were taking advantage of these to watch the battle.  
  
"Come on! Are we going to let these betrayers and some lookalikes fight our battles?" Sailor Uranus pointed to the tentacle monster.  
  
"Uhm, Uranus-san?" Sailor Mars took a rice cracker from one of the marionettes and indicated the battle. "Venus has a point. We're young girls in short costumes. That's a tentacle monster. Do we *really* have to go there?"  
  
"Not gunna do it," sang Sailor Venus. "Not stupid, not expendable, not going. This isn't the light of the charge brigade, you know."  
  
Luna's back arched. "I used that hypnotic attack to wake you up from that illusion. You know the dragon can't be a *real* prince."  
  
"That wasn't what you'd originally thought," pointed out Mamoru. "You thought he might have been from a bastard line."  
  
"Forget what I said! That was then, this is now!" Luna glared at everyone, her yellow moon begin to shine. "There are enemies to the Moon Kingdom. Why are you consorting with them!"  
  
---------  
  
There was a cracking noise as the tentacle monster vanished.   
  
"That was some kind of teleport effect," announced Ami. "It's still alive, just gone off to lick its wounds."  
  
"Civilian casualties:0, Property damage after our arrival: minimal," announced Jade Owl's pilot. "Sending mecha back to storage."  
  
Another swirl of lights and the three part-time Senshi materialized in front of the full-timers.  
  
"Well, that was certainly-" began Ami, feeling really good about her performance. Maybe she could use Blue Dolphin in some noncombat role in the future since it was capable of acting as submarine or spaceship at need.  
  
"World Shaking!" "Deep Submerge!"  
  
Hotaru blinked a moment before the two attacks slammed into her.  
  
"Fire Soul!" "Thunder Crash!"  
  
Setsuna was just beginning to shift to catgirl when she was knocked sprawling.  
  
"Sorry, Ami-chan. Moon Tiara Action!" "Crescent Beam!"  
  
Ami shifted fully into catgirl and leapt above the tiara, then rolled below the Crescent Beam. "But why?!"  
  
"World Shaking!" "Deep Submerge!" "Fire Soul!" "Thunder Crash!" "Moon Tiara Action!" "Crescent Beam!"  
  
"This is for your own good," Luna said as Ami dodged almost all of the attacks. Almost not quite doing it in these circumstances. "Now we can-"  
  
A number of Sailor Marionettes leapt down, having armored up in the meantime.   
  
------  
  
A display showed events going on elsewhere. Actually, a lot of displays since the newscameras had found the Senshi and had been waiting for another strip scene.  
  
"Hotaru?" Greylle was quite alarmed to see the usual 'Uranus & Neptune shooting allies' scene followed by the rest of the Senshi.  
  
"My goodness," said Cologne, "they appear to be tiring. What do you think-?" Cologne realized that the boy had just run off at full speed.   
  
Greylle spoke into a handheld commlink, his voice going out over the intercom. "We have a Dark Taint advisory. It looks like the Senshi have been taken over by this new enemy and they're attacking allies. Authorizing a full scramble of all units and allied forces. Scramble now."  
  
Sirens began blaring. Red lights began flashing. Silos and ramps opened up.  
  
------  
  
It was lovingly recorded by News-5 already on the scene. Action 9 News sent their helicopter to orbit the area. Supermodels (androids) worked crowd control. Nabiki used her magical skills and contacts to have T-shirts and Mugs hawked at "bargain prices" - because if she was going to go out of business she wanted it to be with a real bang.  
  
Akane, being extraordinarily photogenic, was interviewed by four different (late to the field) news agencies. She went into a great deal of detail about this all being late effects of their magical enslavement, and that this was more proof that perverts needed to be pounded.  
  
A little old man saw all the short skirts and tight outfits and was reduced to drooling in front of the Tendo television set.  
  
The battle was not *quite* what anyone expected.  
  
"WAAGGGHHHH!" Sailor Moon was wailing because she had been hogtied in her own pigtails.  
  
Sailor Uranus had gone hand-to-hand with Sabre Jupiter. Sailor Uranus was currently taking a nap on the very rooftop the News-5 crew were on. Sailor Neptune had tried to surround Sabre Jupiter with water in the hopes of shorting her out. Sabre Jupiter had replied by hugging Sailor Neptune and sending 50,000 volts through the water surrounding them. Sabre Jupiter's armor needed all of its fuses replaced, and Sailor Neptune was being given life support by Sabre Mercury and some nurse-marionettes because that had turned out to be a bit too much.  
  
Luna was dealing with something called a Goo Cannon. The device shot about a gallon of slimy goo that quickly hardened to something along the consistancy of bubble gum. Sailor Venus had ducked and, well, Luna was currently stuck to the side of a building.  
  
Sailor Venus was holding her own so far, mainly by dodging everything sent her way and acting like she was in some blind panic.   
  
A problem the marionettes were running into was that most of their attacks were too deadly to use here. They had disagreements with the Senshi, not a desire to kill/seriously wound.   
  
Sailor Uranus woke up, leapt and climbed until she was at ground level, and slowly crossed the battlezone, transforming back to Haruka Ten'ou so that she'd look more "normal crowd." A large crowd seemed to be focussed on other things, so she felt she had a reasonable chance of pulling this off. Finally she found a large hunk of wood and crossed to the unconscious Hotaru. "I'm sorry about this. But the Sailor of Destruction being some boy's slave is entirely too dangerous."  
  
The wood started down, point aiming for a vulnerable neck. A hand grabbed the spike and stopped it.  
  
Greylle glared at Haruka Ten'ou. Haruka changed back to Sailor Uranus, figuring this was her chance to draw the Space Sword and end this evil at its source.  
  
"For the past ten lifetimes or so, you've had this coming." *WHACK!*  
  
The Space Sword landed on the pavement after Sailor Uranus was backhanded.  
  
"I'll give you till tomorrow to heal and prepare yourself, Uranus. You. Me. Nabiki will give you directions to the campsite. We're going to have this out once and for all." Greylle gathered Hotaru's tiny form in his arms.  
  
Sailor Uranus spat blood, aware that everyone was watching now. "Fine. When I win, you relinquish all hold you have over all Senshi and dismantle your operations."  
  
"Okay," said Greylle, considering just throwing the fight briefly. "And what of *your* conditions should you lose?"  
  
"I won't lose," began Uranus. A martial arts fight? Against her in Senshi mode? If he even survived it would be a miracle but his forces would be now bound by his word. "If you win *I'll* join your little harem."  
  
Greylle winced. "Why would I want *that*?! Yeesh. Uncute tomboy who couldn't be feminine if the survival of Japan hinged on it. No thank you."  
  
Sailor Uranus twitched. Not that she *tried* to be feminine, more mysteriously androgynous sort of bishonen.  
  
Seeing that, Greylle turned away with his burden and decided just a little payback would be okay here. "Heck, even if she can't seem to stabilize her age for very long, Saturn's much cuter."  
  
Twitch. Twitch. Pride and competitiveness were putting in their two cents worth.  
  
"Smarter. Sexier when she's over sixteen. LOTS more feminine." He didn't really like insulting people, but this was sort of praising Hotaru - which he was a lot more comfortable doing as long as he didn't have to do it in front of her.  
  
Twitch. Twitch.  
  
A sixteen year old girl whose black hair had purple highlights and was not nearly as unconscious as she was acting turned pure red and was trying very hard to continue to play dead and not yell "sempai" while glomping onto her fiance.  
  
"I'll settle for you getting some therapy, to get your head out of Uranus," said Greylle, walking away without apparent concern. "Or for that matter just your word of honor to never attack my forces again."  
  
Sailor Uranus detransformed, hurting too much and being too tired to maintain it any longer. What *really* hurt though was that casual dismissal. And... what was that ambulance doing with Michiru?!  
  
------  
  
Hotaru cracked her eyes open slightly. If she turned cat now, she knew darn well that she'd be clinging on and would be just a furry little puddle of affection.  
  
She'd never really had friends before this guy. Never really had anyone speak praise to her. Now she did and she felt just so very -  
  
Hmmm. Who to invite to the wedding?   
  
-----  
  
A few hours later, Doctor Mizuno helpfully turned the TV on for the bandaged Michiru Kaioh - now her patient.  
  
"Everyone's talking about the old Sailor Senshi. Are they morons? Incompetents? Just anal? Our poll line phone number is showing on the screen for you to call in your opinion. Sailor Senshi: Threat Or Menace? And should teenage magical girls with devastating attacks be allowed to run loose committing property damage? Your results later in the program." *click*  
  
Doctor Mizuno tried another channel.  
  
"...more footage of the latest debacle from these younger Sailor Senshi as they turn on their allies." *click*  
  
"...which is more proof of why these so-called teenage sentai girls need to be regulated. In my day..." *click*  
  
"Hi there! Boys and girls, do you know what time it is?!" "It's Happy Dino time!"  
  
Doctor Mizuno nodded. Insipid perhaps. Juvenile certainly. At least it wouldn't be showing those scenes over and over again. "Oh by the way, Kaioh-san?"  
  
"Mffff?" Michiru asked through several layers of burn wrap and assorted bandages. Electrical burns could be quite painful.  
  
"I'm not going to take action against you for the attempt on my daughter's life. I *am* a doctor, after all."  
  
"Mffff? Mffff!" Michiru tried to explain that they were just going to subdue the three so that Luna could break them of the mind control. Then she saw the size of the needle the doctor had. "MFFF!"  
  
"Now, Kaioh-san, don't wiggle so much. If you expose any of your burns to air before they've had a chance to heal, the sedatives won't do much to help you," the doctor just squeezed a little dribble of juice from the needle. Though why Kaioh-san's eyes were crossing as she looked at the parts oiler was unclear. You leave things like this to maintenence and they'd never get to oiling that door.  
  
Michiru's eyes crossed as she stared at the Needle From Hell. It looked like the needle was fit for a caulking gun, almost. To her eyes - this was size huge.   
  
When the Doctor left, Michiru sighed in deep relief. Then the head nurse started talking about something called a Barium Enema. Well, that didn't sound so bad, did it?  
  
-------  
  
"The tentacle beast is off whimpering in a corner," said one of the hentai sorcerers. "We'll have to use another."  
  
"They just don't make tentacle demons like they used to," complained another.  
  
After some initial successes, they'd had a failure. Still, it was better than their track record had been prior to the use of hentai-daimons.  
  
"How about this," suggested a third. "Each of us tries *one* servitor. The one with the best results becomes the leader of our coven."  
  
"Hmmm. That'll work, there are six of us left, so six different fetishes empowered." Number Four grinned. "I know just the one and just the target."  
  
"So do I!" Number Five insisted.  
  
"I think this calls for a round of sinister laughter," suggested Six.  
  
"Nah, let's not do that, it sounded pretty silly last time. Let's just do it," said the first one.  
  
"Motion carried," agreed the second of the sorcerers.  
  
---------  
  
"What happened? Fess!" Greylle wasn't yelling, but he wasn't quite sure what to make of this newest development.  
  
"She triggered the catgirl change in order to heal faster," said Fess as he analyzed. "The healing and recovery rate are highest in that form. When she did, the shock of the injuries pushed her into the equivelant of the Catfist."  
  
Hotaru merely purred as she curled up in her fiance's lap. Feeling warm and soft and protected and very very content.  
  
"Okay," said Greylle, absently stroking the girl's fur. If anything the purr increased in volume and Hotaru snuggled closer. "So why is she-?!"  
  
Fess sounded slightly amused. "I think you'd have to ask her that question yourself."  
  
Greylle looked down at the catgirl bonelessly slumped across his lap and wondered exactly why this was so calming. Fur therapy perhaps? Though when she recovered herself, would Hotaru pull an Akane and get angry about this?  
  
Hotaru lazily opened an eye, wondering why her mate had gotten tense. She rubbed her head against a convenient chest and silently indicated that he should resume petting her. Ah! Right behind the ear there. Oh, yessssssss.  
  
--------  
  
Morgana sat down at her lab and fixed the mirror with a glower. "I want answers."  
  
"Wouldn't we all?" The mirror replied, beginning to glow.  
  
"This boy isn't a god. A white mage, a dragon, and a few other things, but his power level isn't nearly what it should be for someone using that crystal. Yet I just watched several videos dealing with 'previous lives' and his misadventures."  
  
The mirror considered. "What do you know of Asgard?"  
  
"Steel and chrome and perfection, it's better than Elysium if you want an afterlife where things aren't quite so communal." Morgana considered. "Though the old Vikings would hardly recognize it if it weren't for the rainbow bridge."  
  
"You are familiar with the Goddess Relief Office?"  
  
Morgana nodded. "Yes. Bunch of meddlers. They have one hundred filters to determine who's good enough to get a wish, and then they rarely consider the harm that could come from granting a 'pure heart' a wish."  
  
"There's also an agency known as the Earth Assistance Hotline that operates similarly. Then there's the Rival Relief Office."  
  
Morgana considered. "As in 'business rival' like an Infernal counterpart?"  
  
"No. In 1937, a wish was granted to someone who wanted to do good deeds. This wish caused the agency to be set up." The mirror paused. "The Agency is a bit of a wildcard. Sometimes filling in for Divine Intervention, or Divine Justice, or even the Goddess Relief Office. The thing is that it is not officially part of Heaven, nor of Hell. The operatives have an extremely low power level compared to other celestial agencies. On the other hand they're not saddled with bureaucracies."  
  
Morgana smiled. "Understood. Small, mainly independent, prone to flying 'by the seat of their pants' as it were?"  
  
"Milady has it." The mirror shimmered agreeably. "For example, the one hundred checkmarks that go into place for a wish from the Goddess Relief Office. Whereas someone who is mainly good and reasonably trying and in distress can still qualify for the much less powerful assistance from a Rival Relief Office operative."  
  
"Ah," said Morgana.   
  
"They also serve as spear carriers and minor functionaries. Conveniently leaving a door unlocked or a horse's reins loose so that the hero can escape, or leaving a knife where the princess can find it and sever the ropes tieing her up before the Dark Lord arrives, or things of that nature." The mirror began flicking images in rapid succession. "It was a RRO operative who dropped a hint to Lancelot that England might have worthy warriors to challenge since France was getting boring. It was an RRO operative who first crafted me."  
  
"Wait, if this group began in 1937..." Morgana waved it away. "Nonsequential timeframes?"  
  
"Exactly. Time travel is also involved. Everything involved with the Rival Relief Office tends to get complicated. He spent quite some time in this agency until he was disbarred recently."  
  
"I shall have to think about this," mused Morgana. "This may explain a lot."  
  
---------  
  
Nabiki happily sold maps and tickets. Newspeople were notified. She didn't make much profit, but what she did make was going into her college fund.  
  
It would be a battle far beyond Ranma getting challenged again by Ryouga Hibiki. Beyond whether Akane would make it another week in her training.  
  
It was more exciting and noteworthy than the tales of the sudden string of underwear thievery going on. It was more fun than listening to Akane grumble about not being a supercute superhuman tigergirl, followed by vehement denials that she'd said anything of the sort.  
  
It was old guard versus new. It was alien prince versus local girl. It was the short haired blonde exhibitionist versus the new guy with the fancy mecha.  
  
There were guys that wanted to see the girl win, preferably losing her seifuku in the process. There were girls who wanted to see the guy win, and if he lost his shirt - so much the better. There were girls who wanted the girl to win and prove that girls could kick butt too. There were guys who wanted the guy to win because they thought this particular girl needed her butt kicked.  
  
The Sailor Uranus who insisted she was the real and original Sailor Uranus versus Greylle Shard.  
  
Ranma won, by the way. Some nearly blind Chinese guy wrapped Ryouga in chains and seemed to confuse him with some sort of hair care product. Nobody was entirely sure where this plot complication had come from. Ranma was upset because he had been wiping the floor with Ryouga when someone hijacked the fight. He had really wanted to get even with Ryouga for leaving him holding the bag on certain people dying during their fights.  
  
Michiru Kaioh heard some of the odds and statements being made and really wished that she could have a talk with Haruka.  
  
------  
  
  
Kasumi and Nabiki and Akane - the three daughters Tendo.  
  
And actually anxious to get home. Akane was sore and weary from hours of trying to move around in high gravity. Nabiki was concerned with her lack of progress in the mystic arts. Kasumi just wanted to get back into familiar environs.  
  
Each was quite preoccupied.  
  
Akane with soreness and the feeling that every muscle and tendon and bone in her body had been stressed to near breaking. As promised, the martial arts training she was undergoing would make her far stronger. Also as promised, it hurt.  
  
Nabiki was preoccupied with thoughts of the coming battle alternating with ideas on how to best stop the next menace if the Senshi couldn't or wouldn't handle it. She didn't want to alienate the Senshi nor the dragon and finding a way to remain in the good graces of both without allying with either was taking some effort.  
  
Kasumi wondered what would be left of their home after several days of her father being the housekeeper. Entering the front gate seemed to indicate that it would be fairly messy just from the small stack of "Top Ramen" containers near the door.  
  
"Sweeeet-oh!"  
  
Akane realized there was something latched onto her front. "EEEEK! Letgo!" She also realized she was too dang tired to react as much as she might normally.  
  
"Oh and even better! Hotcha!"  
  
"Oh my!" Kasumi found that just because he was an older man didn't mean that he was more desirable. She really wished she'd been able to get a powerup. The elegant and powerful Kasumi of her imagination would never have someone attempting to burrow into her blouse.  
  
"Is it a perverted gnome?" Nabiki asked just before the creature leapt from her elder sister to herself.  
  
"Check out these babies!" The gnome was quite happy. "B" to "C" to "D" now. "Hotcha!"  
  
Kasumi saw the first telltale crackle of energy and moved as quickly as possible for the door. Akane eeeped.  
  
Happosai wondered why he felt as if there were a lightning storm nearby.  
  
Nabiki took a deep breath, smiled slightly, and brought her hands to either side of the gnome's head. She had not enhanced her own breasts to give her a more mature look just so that someone could grapple them like he was playing a crane game. "EXPLOSION ARRAY!"  
  
The front gate vanished. A large segment of ground vanished. Part of the Tendo residence - vanished. Not quietly though - spreading out from Nabiki in waves that carried the little gnome away from her though he seemed to recover and started speeding back towards her. "I don't think so."  
  
"Darkness beyond twilight,  
Crimson beyond blood that flows,  
Buried in the stream of time,  
That's where your power grows,  
Those fools who before me stand,  
Now punish with the forces we command."  
  
Crimson light flowed all around Nabiki as mystical symbols and diagrams etched themselves in midair.  
  
Happosai came to the sudden realization he was about to glomp on a girl who was in the process of releasing a tactical nuke. "Uh oh." Time for one of those midair screeching brakes manuevers.  
  
Ryouga leapt over the wall, ready to have his revenge on... waitaminute there was something wrong here.  
  
Nabiki felt the power build up, but there was no Shabranigdo to invoke so she just went with her first impulse. "GUNS N ROSES!"  
  
------------  
  
"This just in at the Channel 12 Newscenter. Four city blocks in Nerima are in ruins due to a gas main explosion at the-" the news commentator frowned. "Excuse me - 'gas main explosion' at the Tendo Dojo? Yeah right. In any case there are apparently no fatalities however the local hospital *is* at capacity and other patients are being moved to Juuban General, which has extra bedspace following the Senshi Striptease Debacle the other day."  
  
"Well, that's one way to get patients," commented the female newsanchor. "How long before the area is suitable for habitation again?"  
  
Gleaming his expensive teeth to the camera, the talking head nodded. "Well, Bufi, there's some good news there. Apparently Cyberdyne Corporation-"  
  
"Excuse me Chetu, isn't that the top secret manufacturing installation whose head is an alien prince but has ties directly to our own Emperor?"  
  
"Right you are, Bufi. Cyberdyne is once again proving their friendship with the Japanese people, and three of the Tendo daughters in particular, by rebuilding the entire area using their advanced technologies." Chetu turned his carefully rehearsed sincere smile to the camera again. "They're predicting a rebuilt area by midnight."  
  
"That's great news, Chetu!" Bufi agreed with equally sincere acting. "Hopefully their efforts here won't cut into tomorrow's fight for control of the Sailor Senshi and Earth's defense forces."  
  
"True, and in the lighter side of the news, there were some arrests at Kanagawa's hot spring girl's dorm, Hinata House when a young woman was arrested for throwing a young man in front of a train. The young woman, a university ronin named Naru Narugesawa, claimed it was an accident but residents report seeing repeated incidents like this."  
  
"Seems to be happening a lot lately," agreed Bufi. "Next up: those darn ducks are back!"  
  
=======  
  
Doesn't Nabiki casting spell variants from "Bastard" seem oddly appropriate? 


	20. Peanuts & Popcorn & Crackerjacks

Retake: Chapter 20  
"Peanuts, Popcorn, Crackerjax."  
  
DISCLAIMER: Neither Bufi nor Chet (Chetu) are real characters. Any similarity to real characters is unintentional.  
  
-------  
  
"Actually, Greylle," began Fess, "I am unsure how these rumors or stories made it into circulation. The news seemed to indicate the whole thing was common knowledge."  
  
Greylle let it go. If it was in public circulation there wasn't much he could do at this point. "What about the Furinkan area?"  
  
"97% rebuilt, there were some unexpected setbacks," admitted Fess. "The epicenter particularly is being enhanced."  
  
"Don't go overboard." Greylle pointed to the listing. "Genma will sell off anything too nice. Or Soun or Happosai will."  
  
"Understood," agreed Fess. "Anything else before you go face your opponent?"  
  
"How's Hotaru anyway?" Greylle asked. "Last night she was still in neko-mode and slept all curled up at the foot of my bed."  
  
"She was apparently feeling better this morning, though for some reason she was very reluctant to change back from catgirl." Fess considered how much detail to go into and decided against it.  
  
"Oh man, she's so cute in this timeline," Greylle said as the picture of Hotaru came up. "You'd think the boys would be lining up."  
  
Fess would have blinked and sweatdropped if he were capable. "I believe she has her eye on a particular guy already."  
  
"Oh?" Greylle thought about this between bites of a nutrition bar. "Lucky guy. See if you can do anything to help her along if he's okay. Just so he's not some perv or spaz or something, ok?"  
  
"I see," said Fess. Maybe it was something particular to anime universes that the object of affection was oblivious to it in normal circumstances. "Very well. I believe she may need some reassurance after her loss of control earlier as a catgirl. Perhaps if you gave her some reassurance today?"  
  
"Good idea," agreed Greylle. "Well. Off to the battle!"  
  
Fess let out an electronic sigh and sent a few specific parts of the conversation to Hotaru. Who for some reason started grinning and walking into furniture. How very odd. Still, he'd been told to 'help her along' in the task of getting the guy she had her eye on. Fess wondered how he could accomplish this best.  
  
------  
  
Sailor Uranus stood near the small stream, looking around. "Did he do a 'no show' and forfeit?"  
  
"Actually, you're starting at this end of the valley, he's starting at the other." Catgirl Sakura held up her microphone. "Everyone else, please remain behind the barricades, force field barriers will automatically engage if the fight gets intense. Fight is until one party surrenders or is unable to battle."  
  
"Don't you think this is a bit much?" Uranus gestured at the four football fields worth of cleared land. "It's just me and that coward going one-on-one. One thrust with the Space Sword and he'll be history." Silently she added that he'd also be paying for tempting her and invading her dreams. She didn't *like* guys, damnit!  
  
"Begin," said Sakura, jumping behind a barricade which lit up with blue light a moment later.  
  
"Gone gone the form of man," said a voice relayed by radios in the stands. "Rise again - the dragon!"  
  
That nagging feeling you'd forgotten something abruptly crystallized for Sailor Uranus. She hadn't remembered he was *that* big. Well, the bigger they are, the harder they fall, right?  
  
The "big lizard" visible at two miles away, quickly gained altitude and seemed to stall.  
  
"Perfect shot," said Uranus. "World Shaking!"  
  
The dragon seemed to lazily dodge the attack, the distance giving sufficient warning to determine where the attack would go and to not be there. He continued to glide for a few moments, still gaining altitude somehow. Quickly rising to become a tiny dot in the distance.  
  
"Coward! Come here and face me like a man!" Uranus figured that once he was in "Space Sword Blaster" range - bam. She turned towards the stands. "Can he hear me like this?"  
  
"Yes, oh and you might want to pay better attention to the fight," said Sakura.  
  
"You call this a fight? Hah," said Uranus, turning her attention back to -  
  
*BOOM* Several tons of dragon shot overhead, moving at magically enhanced speeds of just over Mach 1.  
  
The forcefields flickered slightly brighter as the dust, grass, uprooted trees, odd bits of garbage, and a Sailor Senshi were caught in the wake and briefly tumbled about the clearing.  
  
Uranus spit dirt, getting thoroughly pissed and scanning the skies for that damn dragon. Still, the cameras were on and Michiru would be watching this. "One good shot does not win the battle. I'll beat the beast yet!" Hmmmmm. What was that odd beating noise? Uh oh. Slowly she turned.  
  
Hovering briefly, the silver dragon's jaws distended. *FWUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU* A stream of frost sprayed out, covering dirt and grass and garbage with ice. Oh. And a Sailor Senshi.  
  
The ice cracked and Sailor Uranus staggered out, still partially coated in ice. "For Michiru. For Earth. For my Princess." She looked around, finally spotting a glittering shape arcing up in the skies. Then looping down to skim near the ground. Even faster this time. Perfect target. "World! Shaking!"  
  
Uranus smiled tiredly. She'd put everything she'd had into that one. The golden ball dwindling in the distance, striking the dragon full on and exploding. Yes. She'd won. It was over. It was-  
  
The dragon emerged from the smoke and debris. Looked pissed too. Hmmmm.  
  
Being a woman of action, Sailor Uranus acted. On being faced with several tons of a fang-jawed, nasty-clawed, bullet train bearing down on her, she turned and ran just as fast as she could.  
  
A moment later several tons of dragon slammed into her, imparting enough momentum that she was embedded in the ground.  
  
There was a brief moment of flailing legs before the dragon landed on her, and before the assembled host - scooped up the unconscious Senshi and (like some overgrown dog or cat) laying the defeated at the feet of a girl who had just come out from behind one of the barricades.  
  
Hotaru hugged her dragon's neck briefly before climbing into place to straddle where neck met shoulders.  
  
The two then began a victory flight over the arena.  
  
--------  
  
"So, Kaioh-san," asked Doctor Mizuno of her patient, "what of Ten'ou-san's vow on TV that if he won she'd join his harem?"  
  
Michiru stared at the TV set. "MMFFmmmFFMM." (Haruka no baka.)  
  
Doctor Mizuno went out into the hallway and gave a happy sigh. Most of the *real* nurses, or human nurses, original nurses? Well most of those who had been present for that kid's magical attack had transferred out or otherwise found different venues. So had patients.  
  
When the explosion had occurred, Fess had quietly brought up certain plans.  
  
Over 200 nurses had been produced, literally as they were marionette androids. They were a bit cold and impersonal at first but they were learning. Just as a section of Nerima was being rebuilt, so was her hospital.  
  
Doctor Kumori Mizuno was a dedicated physician and the idea of getting access to the alien's technology had been gnawing at her since the first encounter.  
  
Add to that magical healing abilities and some of the other possibilities glimpsed?  
  
If the boy had been older she'd have tried a more direct approach. If Ami bungled things it might come to that.  
  
Besides, it *had* been at least ten years.  
  
--------  
  
Haruka Ten'ou slowly came to consciousness. When she realized that she'd been knocked out, she rolled to her feet and prepared to renew the fight.  
  
The dragon wasn't there. Neither were the stands or the clearing or any of it. She was currently in a hospital gown, barefoot on a tile floor. A mummified figure from the other bed glared at her.  
  
"Michiru?!" Haruka recognized those eyes.  
  
"MFFFF!"  
  
"Hold on, I'll get you loose," Haruka said and ignored her own bandages in order to grab ahold of a large section and pull it loose.  
  
Fresh air poured into electrical burns as bandages and salve were removed forcibly.  
  
"Urk!" Michiru tried to weather this gracefully.  
  
Haruka looked at the skin. "I guess those are functional bandages and not some kind of restraint... sorry."  
  
Michiru nodded.  
  
"Well, well, the patient is awake," said a nurse. "If you'll be seated, Ten'ou-san, since you two are Senshi we've made available means of healing your injuries faster than would normally be available."  
  
"I've changed my mind," Michiru stated, turning a bit pale at the sight of her own wounds with a quickly produced hand mirror. "I'll take the fastest method available."  
  
"Oh," the nurse said. "Then-"  
  
"Yes, I mean *that*," indicated Michiru.  
  
"Fine. Anytime you're ready Kaioh-san." The nurse left.  
  
"Haruka, you plan to join this boy's harem as you claimed on television?" Michiru wanted to be sure Haruka knew what she was getting into.  
  
"Yeah, and once I've gotten a powerup!" Haruka pumped a fist. "I'll change sides again and use that enhanced power to destroy them!"  
  
"Haruka, no. We will discuss this later." Michiru winced and was glad her face was unrecognizable with all the burns. "After you've dealt with the press."  
  
"The who?" Haruka said before a tide of humanity washed in.  
  
"Excuse me!" "EXcuse me!" "Miss Ten'ou, a word for the viewers?" "Now that you've revealed your Senshi identity to the world, will the rest of the younger Senshi follow suit? What of the original Sailor Senshi?" "What does your boyfriend think of you crossdressing and running around naked on TV?" "Will you abide by the terms of your wager, Haruka-san?" "Ten'ou-san what of your emerging image as Shard-san's greatest rival?" "Haruka-chan!"  
  
Michiru merely moved her bandages to better conceal herself, and left when the stretcher-bed was brought in by a couple of nurses. She'd save Haruka from herself by demonstrating how dangerous it was.  
  
------  
  
"Any idea of the identity of the ship?" Greylle didn't immediately place the stylized, almost Aztec looking, winged dragonship.  
  
"It does not match known species you've encountered," asserted Fess.   
  
"Closest tech match-up?" Greylle preferred having *some* handle on what was coming.  
  
"Gardeners."  
  
Greylle nodded. The Gardeners were a recurrent race in a number of timelines. Sort of a 24th Century Bedouin culture who regarded themselves as responsible adults faced with children gone wild in the absence of any parents. So they took over planets. Good intentions leading to an odd "utopia" where most of the common problems facing mankind were eradicated. However their "children" - the conquered planets - never completely regained their independence.  
  
Gardeners typically had access to technology that Earth normally wouldn't achieve until the 24th Century. Their technology was a little lopsided, as one might expect of alien minds. Their materials manufacturing technology and agrarian technologies were among the most advanced sciences they had. Computer and communication technology on the other hand was only a half-century ahead of Earth's.  
  
This at least gave him a handle. Not the natural power of the Swarm, or the overwhelming technological advantage of the Clarkians.  
  
The Clarkians were called that on those timelines where they intersected Earth, because their technology was so far advanced that it was incomprehensible to 20th Century Earth. Wholesale remaking of continents within seconds was routinely done by Clarkian technology. If he were up against *that* he'd have already lost.  
  
"Communication?"  
  
Fess hesitated. "We've tried laser coded pulses, radio, TV, high energy diffuse, subspace packets, and a low level message drone. Nothing. The drone could not even find an entry port."  
  
"Hmmm. Well, you're already monitoring it. Keep doing that and inform me if something happens," Greylle said. "Oh have you seen Hotaru?"  
  
---------  
  
Hotaru Tomoe was at her shrine, practicing her duties as a shrine priestess.  
  
Young boys stared at the young girl.   
  
She was glowing. Not in the manner of a Senshi powerup, nor with rage.  
  
Birds flitted down to land on crooked finger and sing at her. Deer, not normally found inside Tokyo city limits, frolicked on the lawn.   
  
This was enough to get people's attentions. That some of the birds were really exotic was a bit more interesting.  
  
The glowingly happy shrine miko, sweeping steps, and humming a wedding march, while small animals and exotic birds darted about in the background?  
  
They were Japanese, the vast majority had cameras and were using them.  
  
Hotaru typically listened to various New Age composers. Right now, she was thinking of the benefits of Shinto (she *was* a Shinto priestess after all) versus Western (faster, a lot less uncomfortable, and he *was* a Western dragon) versus a Civil ceremony.  
  
The sun seemed to pass behind a cloud.  
  
Hotaru winced and addressed the sun. "Can I at least do without the headress?"  
  
The sun brightened again.  
  
Hotaru sighed. Sometimes being a shrine maiden had extra chores involved.  
  
----  
  
They had just watched an episode of this new TV program named "Evangelistion" and the Hentai Sorcerers had arranged their tables with tracklights along the floor and various other "STEELE" references.  
  
"The First Angel is ready," said one.  
  
"They're hentai-daimon, we can't go calling them Angels like that," protested one of the others.  
  
"Whatever, release it and we'll see how it does."  
  
"I think we should get one of those giant robot things, that'd be cool."  
  
"Moron."  
  
-----  
  
"There's a youma in Akihabara!" Luna exclaimed over the Sailor Communicators. "Let's go!"  
  
"Usagi, can you bop that stupid cat?"  
  
"Minako?!"  
  
"I'm tired of this, Luna!" Minako pouted. "We've gotten our butts waxed on three missions lately! This isn't like facing those youma that Beryl used either. They're stronger, faster, and they don't bother with draining energy or something like that. And look at our numbers. We don't have Pluto or Mercury because that dragon prince has 'em and Saturn, and I'm *not* buying anything about them being mindless or sexslaves. Neptune is in the hospital. Uranus gave away her secret identity and got whip-creamed by that dragon. We're down members and we weren't doing that good before they left."  
  
"We're not doing *that* badly," argued Makoto.  
  
There was a brief silence.  
  
"Okay, maybe we *are* doing that badly," conceded Makoto.   
  
"What's this one do?" Usagi asked, hoping to smooth over the obvious friction.  
  
"Come on, will you just go face it?" Luna asked the currently reluctant superheroes.   
  
"I'm in!" Sailor Uranus announced over her communicator. "I'm on my way."  
  
------  
  
Hotaru blinked. There was a monster in Akihabara. She quickly crossed to the shrine office, pulled on a candlestick holder with a special switch, dropped down the secret passageway-  
  
"Fess?"  
  
"Yes, Hotaru?"  
  
"Why am I wearing skintight black leather with a mask and dark blue cape? With a bat symbol on my chest?"  
  
"Oh. Sorry. It appears the test data on the costumes wasn't cleared."  
  
Hotaru nodded and accepted that, checking a mirror for a quick glimpse to confirm. Yup. Batgirl. Hmmm. Kind of looked kinky. She wondered what her fiance would say about it. "Any other outfits?"  
  
"Just the Evangelion plug suits."  
  
"Oh," said Hotaru, wondering if that had any better a concealment value. "Any information on the youma?"  
  
"Errr. Yes. It's kind of strange though."  
  
Hotaru blinked and wondered what could be sufficiently bizarre to register as "kind of strange" to Fess.  
  
------  
  
"No more sweets!" Moon pleaded, covered in icing.  
  
"Tastee!" The latest of the hentai-daimon proclaimed.  
  
"Waaaaa! How am I supposed to get all this chocolate syrup out of my hair?!" Moon touched her tongue to the chocolate topping. "Not bad though. Kinda of a chocolate caramel. AAAAAAAA!"  
  
"Sailor Moon, this is " *thud!*  
  
"WAAAAA! Mamo-chan just slid down the stairs."  
  
Jupiter struggled from where she was bound by donuts. "This does not look good."  
  
Venus, captured within cake, agreed. "Someone call the androids! We need back up! I'm too young to be a pastry!"  
  
"You can do it," called out Luna.  
  
*SPLURT!*  
  
"If I were able to move my hands, I'd applaud," said Venus as Luna gained a layer of maple frosting.  
  
Tastee, who bore a strong resemblence to the droid Marzipan, got ready to unleash another strong attack. Except there were no other attackers around. "Tastee?"  
  
"Ah, it's gonna finish us off!" Moon cried. "MMmfff!"  
  
Tastee admired the work of the grapefruit-sized cherry gagging Moon before she moved on to the next. Soon enough, they *were* finished off. Sort of.  
  
"We're not dead?" Venus realized.  
  
Tastee looked over at the cake from which a Sailor Venus protruded partially. "What kind of daimon do you think I am?"  
  
"The really kind, gentle, lets-girls-go, kind?" Jupiter asked hopefully.  
  
"I am Tastee, the hentai food daimon!" The daimon posed dramatically. "I'm not into cannibalism. I'm not a killer. Heck, I'm not even that much into doing anything hentai. More like food preparation."  
  
The brown frosted Luna fell over.  
  
A large glob of whipped cream slowly moved up the stairs. "Do you mind letting us go then?"  
  
"After I've defeated the rest of your team, sure," said Tastee, licking her lips. "Hmmm. Speaking of which, you look kinda tasty yourself sugar."  
  
Tuxedo Mask wiped whipped cream away from his face. "Would it help to tell you that this *is* our team? Uranus and Neptune are in the hospital. Pluto, Mercury, and Saturn have broken away from this group."  
  
"Oh." Tastee thought a moment. "Sure, sugar. Let me get the camera. That way I can prove I did it to my Dark Hentai Master and y'all can get back to whatever y'all do the rest of the time."  
  
Much blinking. That was it? A coating of sugar products and a slap on the wrist and the Enemy was just letting them go?   
  
"What about all these other girls?" Mamoru asked, the gesture causing more whipped cream to slough off his costume.  
  
"They can go too. Y'all can keep the extra pastries and stuff I made for the inconvenience," said Tastee, readying her camera. "Smile, y'all!"  
  
"NOT SO FAST!"  
  
Many Senshi (and a hidden Artemis) groaned.  
  
"Please, just go back to the hospital," pleaded Tuxedo Mask.  
  
It felt a little odd operating without Neptune, but Uranus was up for the job. It was a pity those newshounds had followed, but now they would record her stunning victory!  
  
"Y'all lied to little old me?" Tastee turned a hurt look towards the whipped cream-and-tuxedo clad male mascot.  
  
"She's *supposed* to be in the hospital," explained Tuxedo Mask.  
  
"World!" Sailor Uranus held her hand up, summoning power. *fizzle*  
  
Sailor Uranus blinked, suddenly feeling very tired and realizing in that fight with the dragon she *had* thrown everything she had at her opponent. Leaving her barely able to summon 1/10th of what she normally could.  
  
"Tastee!" The daimon of toppings declared, sending her own attack towards the lone Senshi.  
  
"Shaking!" Sailor Uranus tried. *SPLURT!*  
  
"She's pink," remarked Venus. "Strawberry frosting?"  
  
"Yeah," said Tastee, looking around. "Okay, who's next?"  
  
"Ms. Youma, you've just defeated the Sailor Senshi, what are your plans now?" A particularly foolish (or brave) reporter surged forward.  
  
"Uhm," Tastee thought about that briefly. "Oh, I know. I'm going to Disneyland!"   
  
-------  
  
Hastily, signs were constructed at Tokyo Disneyland.  
  
[No youma allowed.]  
  
-------  
  
Several hentai sorcerers drooled over the pictures.  
  
"Not bad, not bad, but wait till I finish *my* daimon!"  
  
-------  
  
Catgirls Mercury, Pluto, and Saturn listened briefly, then shrugged. Not much point in them even getting involved.  
  
-------  
  
"Uhm, can we get out now?" Venus asked hopefully.  
  
Tastee thought about it and nodded. "Yeah. At least until I run into some of those others. I probably ought to face them."  
  
"Okay."  
  
Batgirl dropped down from the ceiling.  
  
"Batgirl?!" Tastee stared. "But I'm supposed to fight the Sailor Senshi."  
  
"Then you shall," said another voice as Pluto and Mercury dropped down.  
  
"TASTEE!" The daimon sent a stream of ice cream at Batgirl. Batgirl rolled to the side and threw a batarang.  
  
"Watch where you're throwing that," cautioned Tuxedo Mask. "You almost hit Luna."  
  
"Saturn Ring Toss," tried Saturn/Batgirl.  
  
"Tastee?" Tastee found glowing rings encircling her.  
  
"Do you surrender?" Pluto and Mercury asked, holding attacks ready.  
  
Tastee tried the barrier, found that she couldn't get through, and nodded. "Okay."  
  
A couple of police officers came over and slapped handcuffs on as soon as the daimon was freed from the rings.  
  
"She's a very sweet girl," said Batgirl/Sailor Saturn, "it's just that she's a violent maniac."  
  
The donuts faded away from Jupiter, Venus hit the floor as her cake disippated. An eclair resolved into Sailor Mars. Everyone else found their prisons likewise fading away.  
  
"Now who's going to clean this up?"  
  
--------  
  
Minako slowed to a halt. Makoto and Rei noticed, followed her gaze, and also came to a halt. Usagi and Mamoru got a lot further before they returned to see what the problem was.  
  
A video store with dirty windows and faded posters, looking every inch the sort of sleazy dive you'd find in a number of major cities.  
  
"Oh dear kami NO," breathed Rei.  
  
[Sailor V Versus The Tentacle Demon IV]  
  
"Do I want to know?" asked Minako with a tremble in her voice.  
  
"They've been putting those out since the initial appearance of Sailor V in 1989," said a girl nearby.  
  
"Who?" Most of the gazes turned towards the girl were a little glazed over - as in lost in some private horror.  
  
"In most timelines," explained the girl, "it is the discovery of these videos and related items that causes Sailor Moon to unleash the ginzuishou and purify the world."  
  
"You're one of the androids," said Mamoru. "There's more of these?"  
  
"There are at present seventy four different titles of hardcore, forty eight of softcore, and assorted toy sales." Kirsten being an android who regularly pooled data with others, had access to quite a lot of data.  
  
"Cute little dolls for girls, right?" Minako asked, her eyes pleading.  
  
"Those too. Sorry." Kirsten shrugged. "From records, as soon as one of you made a public sighting, a number of these companies immediately started looking for lookalike 'actresses' and putting these together. Along with the toys."  
  
"What kind of... toys would they sell in a store like this," came Makoto's voice. It wasn't really voiced as a question.  
  
Kirsten at first didn't answer. After Minako and Rei asked, she started listing them off. She paused twice to let the sometimes-Senshi throw up.  
  
"As stated," Kirsten continued, "after repeatedly saving the world, finding these usually is the push that causes Usagi to become Queen Neo-Serenity and purify the world - exiling those who resist to Nemesis and creating Crystal Tokyo."  
  
"We saved the world, we risk our lives, and they..." Minako looked about ready to run off crying.  
  
"Hey, you dames!" The store owner stepped out. "Either come in or get off da sidewalk, don't go blockin' my..."  
  
*KA-POWIE!*  
  
Kirsten looked over at Makoto. "You realize that did absolutely no good, don't you? There are over 387 such stores in Tokyo under nearly as many owners. The Yakuza own most of the owners. The video and 'adult toy' manufacturers make too much money for this to have any effect."  
  
Mamoru considered. He had differences with the dragon but there were times having a high powered ally could come in handy. "Does the dragon know of this?"  
  
Kirsten cocked her head. "Does he know that this sort of thing provides the trigger for Crystal Tokyo? Yes. Does he know it happens? Yes. Does he partake of these videos? No. Fess and Cyberdyne have already stopped the 'Super Doctor Mizuno Versus Rape-man' video, and have applied injunctions against the catgirl, maid, or civilian likenesses of those under Shard-sama's banner being used. Since they are listed as employees of Cyberdyne - Cyberdyne has the legal authority to defend them."  
  
Rei's eyes widened. "No wonder we've got these hentai monsters coming after us. Whoever has been sending them has been watching things like this for *three years*?!"  
  
"Not completely," provided Kirsten. "Sailor V has been around the longest. Then when you vanished, the market disappeared for these things. I was able to access sales data and it was only after your reappearance that rentals and sales resumed."  
  
"...eeee..." Minako twitched, her bright and perky shell having developed a few cracks.  
  
Artemis wondered if he could say ANYTHING that would make a difference at this point.  
  
"I gotta go," managed Minako. "I... gotta go."  
  
"Maybe you *should* purify the world, Usako," said Mamoru softly.  
  
Kirsten shook her head. "That would require the ginzuishou. Even purifying this district would be beyond her current capabilities. On the other hand, if you like, I can request you be allowed on the next Yakuza hunt."  
  
Makoto volunteered so quickly she could barely get the words out comprehensibly.  
  
-------  
  
"Well, Chetu, this just in at the NewsCenter 12!" The female half of the anchor was glad that it wasn't another "duck" or other fluff piece. "Seems the Sailor Senshi have admitted that there is dissent among their ranks and this is part of the reason for their less than stellar performance of late."  
  
"Yes, Bufi. Details are not forthcoming but Sailor Uranus had this to say about it:"  
  
The film was of Haruka in her hospital gown. "The dragon cheated. That's all there is to it. I challenged him to a man-to-man fight. He came as a dragon. He specified time and place and this clearly gave him an unfair advantage."  
  
Reporter: "What of the stories that you as Haruka Ten'ou have repeatedly cheated on races in the past?"  
  
Haruka: "Simply rumors spread by men who don't know how to lose gracefully. Pathetic really."  
  
Reporter2: Is there any truth to the rumors that the younger looking Senshi are incompetents who are simply trying to force the slightly older group out of power, a rebellion between the Sailors?"  
  
Haruka: "That's not even worth commenting on. Some of our members have been tricked by a cheating dragon!"  
  
"Oh my, Chetu, that's quite some facial tick Ten'ou-san has going there."  
  
"Right you are, Bufi. Things got worse after the attack of the daimon Tastee in Akihabara's new Desserterie. While pink frosting was being chipped off of her, she had this to say:"  
  
Haruka: "OUCHHHHH! Damn dragon and his harem!"  
  
Bufi shook her head. "That's twice Ten'ou has mentioned a harem. What exactly is she referring to?"  
  
"Well, Bufi, at first we thought it might be some alien custom, but as near as we can determine there are currently three people accumulating fiancees that might be considered developing harems."  
  
RANMA SAOTOME: "No. No how. No way. Not even. Uhm. What's a 'harem?' Uh huh... WHAT?!" (Thud)  
  
"As you can see, Bufi, just explaining the concept to Mister Saotome caused him to faint. We ran into the other candidate for harem lord in our parking lot where he was apparently trying to find a campsite."  
  
RYOUGA HIBIKI: "A what? Uhm. Is that camera on? You're kidding right? This must be some rumor Saotome started! Arrgghh! Ranma Saotome! You'll pay for this!"  
  
"Chetu, were those *fangs*?"  
  
"Unfortunately, Bufi, Hibiki charged off right after that. Unfortunately because four cars in our parking lot were damaged by his run. We're trying to find the owners."  
  
"..."  
  
"Bufi?"  
  
"I still had twelve payments on that car. Rrrrr. Ryouga Hibiki! You'll pay for this!"  
  
----  
  
Nabiki set her bracelet off to the side. It had been a pain to find and remove it, and then get the other two from Kasumi and Shampoo but having that sort of threat hanging over their heads would not have been good.  
  
The bracelets were old and magical and granted the wearer the lifespan of an elf. All well and good. They also transformed the wearer into a female elf. Not so good. Said female elf would be under the control of whoever wore the command ring.  
  
Which is why the bracelets had been removed and were ready to be consigned to a wooden box with spirit wards engraved on the surface and given to Hotaru's shrine.  
  
Nabiki knew darn well *who* had the command ring and was not going to go there.  
  
----  
  
"Ah, at last I have found you!"  
  
Hotaru blinked from behind the counter of the fortune telling booth of her shrine. "Oh. You're that skater guy whose name I can never remember."  
  
Sweeping his hair back and posing slightly, the skater looked as bishonen as he could manage. "The name, my dear, is Mikado Sanzennin. Half of the infamous Golden Pair of Martial Arts Figureskating. I'm sure you'll be able to remember me in detail now."  
  
Hotaru finished selling an ema (wooden plaque) to a couple of Middle School girls. "Hmmm?"  
  
Mikado twitched. "Clearly what's needed is to fashion some favorable memories, and what I suggest is an evening full of memories that you'll fondly look back on. Shall we say about eight?"  
  
Hotaru blinked. "What?"  
  
"Oh hi, Hotaru, i..." Greylle paused. Hotaru wasn't falling for Mikado the Molester was she?  
  
"Sempai!" Hotaru's reaction was to blush and for some reason she was surrounded by soft lighting with a lot of flowers in the background.  
  
Mikado twitched. A tall and clumsy looking gaijin? Well, he'd broken up couples before. "I challenge you..."  
  
Not having time for this, Greylle went for the simplest method of dealing with this Romeo. "Okay." *THWAM!*  
  
The slapstick light was apparently on as Mikado was simply embedded into the ground like a tent peg. His eyes blinked for a few moments, being suddenly on ground level.  
  
"Oh, sempai!" Hotaru quickly came around the corner. "Your collar is crooked." Deft fingers quickly straightened the errant cloth.  
  
There were a few errant snickers and muted comments from the crowd at the sight.  
  
Mikado offered a mumbled protest that he was a skater, not a step ladder.  
  
Hotaru suddenly realized what they looked like and fled back to the shrine's booth where the shadows might conceal the resulting blush.  
  
Realizing that Hotaru had stepped on Mikado, Greylle was happy to see Hotaru grinning and that Mikado wasn't the boy she was fixating on. "Well, I was just checking up on you, Hotaru-chan. See you a bit later."  
  
-------  
  
"Look," said the girl in the lead, holding up a photo. "That's one of them."  
  
Ranma grumbled to himself. Yet *more* troubles. He was sure Ryouga had something to do with this. Now... oh crap.  
  
Ranma leapt to the side as a vaccuum blade attack sliced sidewalk where he'd been a moment ago.  
  
"So, Ranma Saotome, enemy of all women, destroyer of schools, and murderer, at last we meet."  
  
Ranma looked around quickly. High school girls. Five of them. "You're not more fiancees are you?"  
  
"We are the school defenders," said one.  
  
"-who strike against evil," continued another.  
  
"-our cause is righteousness," continued a third.  
  
"-to destroy jerks like you," added a fourth.  
  
"We are the Shinsengumi!" The leader pointed at Ranma with her bokken. "Your butt has just been declared prime kicking area."  
  
Ranma let out a deep breath. "Let me guess. Ryouga."  
  
"Yes, Ryouga Hibiki has spoken of how he is merely an innocent dupe of you and some wicked dragon!" The leader sneered at Ranma. "And today you will pay for your crimes against women and society!"  
  
"Uh huh," Ranma said, wondering if he could get back up on this. Fighting crazy chicks seemed to get him in trouble. Not fighting crazy chicks got him in trouble. Heck, just *seeing* crazy chicks was probably trouble. Maybe he should find a monastery somewhere.  
  
"Ryoko Mitsurugi, of the Mitsurugi sword style," said the leader.  
  
"Megumi Momoi, pro wrestling style martial arts," said the second.  
  
"Xiaoxing Huang, shibari style martial arts," said the cute and very young third of their number.  
  
"Asuka Kuronari," was the one dressed like a ninja.  
  
"Aoi Asahina," was the quiet announcement of the fifth. "Celestial Sword style."  
  
Ranma wondered how bad it would hurt his reputation to just turn and run. Probably not as bad as if he stuck around. In which case.  
  
"Ya ain't laying a hand on him," said a voice as a girl with a large spatula dropped down next to Ranma. "Five on two ain't quite as bad as five-on-one, right?"  
  
Ranma muttered something unkind as just running away now wasn't a possibility. Or was it? "Ucchan? On the count of three."  
  
Ukyo nodded and brought her baker's peel to the ready. "Whenever you are, Ranchan!"  
  
"One two three. Run away!"  
  
Ukyo blinked twice. "Huh? What?" Ukyo glanced over at Ranma only to find the area empty. "Ranma?" She realized she as in shadow. "...oh crap..."  
  
*Boom!*  
  
"After that pervert!"  
  
-----------  
  
*Zoooooom!*  
  
Shampoo blinked. There went her airen.  
  
"Get him!" *zzzooooom!* "Die Ranma Saotome!"  
  
Shampoo blinked. Five women? Shampoo was curious and looked back where they'd come from. "AIYAH! Fate has left Shampoo a present! Obstacle is for marrying off to someone else!"  
  
"MFFFFFF!"  
  
*Clatter clatter thunk thunk thunk.* "Hello, Bingbing Delivery? Shampoo just love cellphones," said Shampoo to the crate she'd just slapped together and decorated with "Fresh Tart - You No Open", "Preserve Freshness: Keep Sealed", and addressed to that little farmhouse she'd visited with those idiot senshi or whatever they called themselves. "Shampoo glad this close to store Great Grandmother set up. Will have much fun with airen now that silly spatula girl find much much happiness with someone else."  
  
Zooooom!* "Outtamyway!"  
  
Shampoo blinked as a small metal cylinder bounced at her feet just moments after her airen had passed by. "Hmmm?"  
  
*Fsssshhhh!* The cloud of pink smoke erupting from the cannister was less puzzling.  
  
Megumi noticed the girl, determined it was not the target in one of his clever disguises, and threw her in the crate and sealed it. That way if this was another ally of Ranma, she'd be trapped in the crate.  
  
Ten minutes later, Bingbing Deliveries picked up the crate.  
  
-------  
  
Mikado chose his target well. Not a martial artist. Cute and having a very nice figure. Perfect for his newest target and to regain his groove. "Well, hello there, such an interesting outfit you have there. My name is Mikado Sanzennin, and I'm sure it's your pleasure to meet me. Why don't you let me treat you to a nice lunch while we discuss plans for our date tonight?"  
  
"Freeze Arrow!"  
  
Mikado wondered why he was suddenly encased in ice.  
  
Nabiki shook her head. Yet another pervert. Still, she was beginning to see why Akane collected them. There was something satisfying in dealing with them like this. Hmmm. Maybe. "ELMEKION LANCE!" Yup. Definitely satisfying. Got some good hang time out of that too.  
  
-------  
  
Warnas, evil god of slavery, wondered about this nonsense.   
  
Here he was a god of evil whose philosophical path had long been referred to as Lawful Evil. He was the god of evolution, empires, and the strong ruling the weak.   
  
Mercy was not in his lexicon. Forgiveness not an eventuality. When he said he would do something, he had given his Word and it was as good as done.  
  
If he could bother to pay attention. This was getting irritating enough that he might actually have to bestir himself.  
  
As an Elder god he could easily tell what had occurred.   
  
Shampoo had taken a crate which had previously been used for Chinese vegetables and stuffed a bound rival in there and called for a delivery. She had ended up getting bound and shoved into the crate herself. Which had been *after* Ranma Saotome had doubled back and hidden in the crate.  
  
"Toltiir, it *has* to be him, otherwise I still wouldn't be getting visitors." Warnas considered the possibilities. He needed a break. A glance at the delivery woman and he had an idea.  
  
He was fairly civilized. Nice was not part of the equation.  
  
Erasing them from existence was a possibility. Lacked something though. Instead he just had them delivered.  
  
With a few changes of course.  
  
--------  
  
She awoke in the dim lighting and immediately rolled to her feet, hands reaching for a gun that wasn't there. Something was wrong however and she bounced around as if she was almost in freefall.  
  
"Good morning," said a pleasant male baritone. "Nice to see you're awake."  
  
The woman quickly went over the nondescript motel room with steel shuttered windows. "Obviously my cover was blown. So what's the plan? Torture? And why am I wearing pink bunny pajamas?"  
  
"We had it in your size available," said the voice.  
  
"Mind showing yourself, I like knowing who I'm talking to," she said while checking the room for something to use as a weapon.  
  
The shutters slowly raised.  
  
"Oh *crap*," said the woman, realizing why she felt as if she weighed 1/6 what she normally did.  
  
"Rosita Villalobos. Age 39. Central Intelligence Agency of the United States. Actually working for the Mexican government as a deep operative. Codename: Sidewinder. You seduced, robbed, and killed your first man at age 12. All the same guy in fact. Recruited as a sleeper agent at the age of sixteen."  
  
"This trip down memory lane have a purpose?" Rosita asked.  
  
"The reason I don't show you my face is that I am an artificial intelligence. However, I think we can make use of each other's talents."  
  
"I remember finding that elevator, then nothing," mused Rosita. "Must have been fast acting. Okay, you hold the cards. I'm listening."  
  
"Your files show you to be ruthless and completely amoral. You don't enjoy killing, it simply is something you're very good at and you see absolutely nothing wrong with killing. If I allowed you to go free, you would likely kill one of the employees or visitors eventually just to keep in practice. Hence your current prison."  
  
Rosita considered. "I'm on the Moon. No air. No food. No water. At least for a hundred thousand miles or so. What's your deal?"  
  
"You are a huntress. The ship you are currently in will travel to a distant star and eject your capsule on a world far from our own. The deal is for you to explore it and report back using the transmitter in the capsule."  
  
"What do *I* get out of it? I was in data gathering, not wetwork."  
  
"No, and you've only killed three times in the past year, there is only one other alternative I can think of though."  
  
Rosita looked out at the barren moonscape and gave an experimental hop. It could have been a fake but she knew of no way to fake lighter gravity. The choice was obvious. Go on this mission and try to find a way back. Don't and suck vaccuum. "When do I start?"  
  
Fess was relieved. Sending this girl into the desmense of a god of evil would shift her loyalties, but he was fairly sure that nobody would be happy with the results. "Whenever you're ready."  
  
"Let's get it over with then."  
  
--------  
  
Ryoga was ready to kill Ranma. Nothing new.  
  
Lots of women wanted to kill HIM. That was new.  
  
His cousin Shizuma Kusanagi wanted to fight HIM. That was not new so much as something frightening.  
  
To some degree, Ryoga Hibiki viewed his cousin as being a lot like him. Fangs, family bandana, great stamina and strength, oodles and oodles of chi, enjoyment of fighting, etc. No getting lost and an appetite similar to a Saotome. However, Shizuma was a *lot* more competitive and fight oriented. Ryoga enjoyed a good fight. Shizuma LIVED for a good fight.  
  
So when a mutual acquaintance crossed Ryoga's path and told the lost boy that cousin Shizuma had caught the rumors about Ryoga being able to destroy an entire school with one blow, Ryoga decided he needed to get lost NOW. It was perfectly understandable.  
  
Ryoga was many things, but fond of cousin Shizuma was not one of them.  
  
-------  
  
Minako wiped tears away, trying to catch her breath and dignity.  
  
"Are you sure about this, Miss Aino?" The hovertruck driver asked the girl. The android thought that it was just that she was reacting to a sudden shock, and that maybe a leisurely drive would give her time to cool, but the girl had insisted they come here.  
  
Minako nodded once.  
  
She had fought menaces and criminals. She had suffered under the curse laid upon her by Danburite. She had *died* to save the world!  
  
She'd visited one of those video stores after leaving the others. One of those filthy, dirty, sticky floored, disgusting video stores. There they had been in all their cheap plastic covers with the cheap artwork. Sure enough, the first one had been a British import made in 1989. When she'd only been twelve and fighting evil for the first time and getting cursed by Danburite. 1990 had seen the bulk of the films. If you could call them that.  
  
She had saved the world and championed for peace and love and justice. And the world had turned around and betrayed her. The things on these tapes, declared in bold yellow letters, done to her and her friends. The monstrous things done to them in lurid detail.  
  
The way Minako Aino saw it, she had three choices:  
a) turn her back on the whole thing. She would never become Sailor Venus again. Artemis would get kicked to the moon if he tried to force her. The world had revealed that it was a dark ugly place and if some alien menace was to come and destroy it - let someone who still believed in humanity save it!  
b) go with the way that one android had said had occurred elsewhere. Get Usagi, find a way to get the ginzuishou, purify the world. Exile the makers of that filth to some forgotten world outside the solar system.  
c) do this.  
  
Minako Aino walked down the path towards the house, stopping halfway and waiting.  
  
------  
Shizuma Kusanagi has fangs and a tiger bandana. Cousin of Ryoga Hibiki? Shizuma and the members of the Shinsengumi appear in the "Real Bout High School" manga put out by TokyoPop as a trade paperback.   
  
  
omake omake omake omake  
  
"Sure you want to stick around here, kid?"  
  
Ranma sighed, then turned and glared. "I've handled the worst that you can dish out!"  
  
Toltiir blinked. "Excuse me? The *worst*?!"  
  
Ranma glared at everyone snickering. "Yeah!"  
  
The cat grinned. "Let's see, how about if I do - THIS!"  
  
----------  
  
"Here's a story,  
'bout a man named Tendo,  
who lost his wife,  
and his daughters,  
with emotional excess!"  
  
"Here's a story,  
'bout Saotome,  
who had a little son,  
that he dragged around,  
and they were all alone!"  
  
"Then one day Tendo came to realize,  
and it was much more than a hunch,  
he needed daughters - so adopted,  
that's the way that he got a Tendo Bunch!  
The Tendo Bunch!  
The Tendo Bunch!  
Way too many - but that's the Tendo Bunch!"  
  
------------  
  
"How could you kill them off?" Ranma demanded of the Elder god.  
  
Toltiir blinked. "What are you talking about? She went off to live with relatives and took her daughters with her. Look into the pool. Kasumi's working as a short order cook, Nabiki's attending business college, and Akane's off with her ski club. They just happen to be nowhere near Nerima."  
  
"And who're these girls?!" Ranma pointed to the number of *new* Tendo girls.  
  
"They're from a 'Kingdom Hearts' set of universes," said the Elder god of mischief. "Letting them get swallowed by Darkness is no fun, so they just ended up a little younger and partially amnesiac."  
  
"Kingdom Of Hearts?! That's dumb."  
  
---------  
  
Soun held up the postcard. "At last! Today's the day! Aerith! Cinderella!"  
  
The two girls stepped out of the kitchen and smiled at their adoptive though silly father. "Yes, father?" "Otou-san?"  
  
"Family meeting," said Soun, crossing to the backyard and sticking his head in the koi pond. He'd had to expand it considerably, but when summer got unbearably hot the depths of the pool cooled things off. "Ariel!"  
  
The red head looked up from where she was reading and nodded.  
  
Soun went up stairs and knocked on a door. "Yuffie?"   
  
"Yeah, pops?"   
  
Soun banged his head against the ceiling, then turned to confront his sneaky "daughter". "How do you *do* that, anyway?"  
  
"It's a knack," admitted Yuffie, ninja-thief of the household. "Family meeting, right?"  
  
Soun nodded and tried to get his heartrate back under control. "Have you seen..."  
  
"Mulan? She's jogging, I think. Jasmine's probably on the roof again. Belle's in her room, want me to get her?" Yuffie offered.  
  
Soun frowned.  
  
Yuffie sighed. "Fine. No charge."  
  
--------  
  
At the Well, Ranma-mw blinked and scowled. "What are *they* doing here?"  
  
"Well, they're orphans, and they're princesses. The bad guys are after princesses," explained Toltiir.  
  
"Shinobu Maehara is a princess?!"  
  
"Well, in a manner of speaking," admitted Toltiir.  
  
---------  
  
Soun went into the spare building. Even he could admit than when he'd started adopting girls, well, he'd gone just a little overboard.  
  
"Makoto! Hotaru! Michiru!"  
  
"Yo!" "Hai, papa!" "I was just going to practice my violin."  
  
"You can do that later, Michiru, family meeting," said Soun. He quickly crossed over to the other dorm room, steeled himself, and addressed the occupants. "Rei, Lillith, Sasami, Shinobu. Family meeting. Rei, stop putting spirit wards on Lillith. Lillith, get your big sisters and stop trying to drain Rei's blood."  
  
"Morrigan! Setsuna! Stop fighting! Family meeting!"  
  
----------  
  
"What about *them?*" Ranma-mw pointed at the display. "They're not princesses!"  
  
"Well, they weren't happy with their original timeline," allowed Toltiir.  
  
---------  
  
"Rei, Misato, Asuka, Maya," called Soun. "Family meeting."  
  
--------  
  
Maleficient glanced at Jaffar out of the corner of her eye. "Soon."  
  
Jaffar smirked. "No. Soun."  
  
"He'll want to engage one of his 'daughters' to this... Ranma," said Maleficient slowly. "It was a sufficient obsession with him to adopt them upon their escape to this world."  
  
"Pfeh," spat Sephiroth. "Watch. If I offer that Genma a decent amount of coin - he'll sell his son off before they come anywhere near the Tendo Dojo. Providing we don't simply unleash the Heartless and destroy this world before then."  
  
----------  
  
"Where do I begin?" Soun began.  
  
"Oh, this is about Ranma, isn't it?" Setsuna said as she consulted her day planner. "Odd how time gets away from me anymore."  
  
Everyone but Soun laughed for some odd reason that completely escaped him. "Yes, well. Family honor demands that he marry a Tendo. An honor arrangement made before his birth."  
  
"Hold it right there," said Morrigan. "What was the exact wording of this document? Do you have a copy?"  
  
"Uhm, it was an honor arrangement - verbal. I..." Soun began to sweat as he usually did when Morrigan focussed her full attention on him.  
  
Shinobu moved through the group, passing out glasses of iced tea.  
  
"Could it have actually been something like: 'Tendo - we should unite the two Schools Of Anything Goes by uniting the families. My son should marry your daughter(s).'"  
  
"You engaged *all* of us to him? Oh my." Shinobu turned red.  
  
"No no no no no," said Soun hastily. "ONE of you must marry him."  
  
"Oh," Morrigan snapped her fingers. "Pity."  
  
Soun twitched a couple of times. Maybe Morrigan should be excluded. On the other hand, one week engaged to Morrigan and Ranma would be experienced enough to make one of his other daughters happy. "What I'm suggesting is that he spend one week engaged to each of you, and then decide at the end of that time which he'll marry."  
  
There was some general dismay over that suggestion. Makoto glared around the group. "Whose idea was that?"  
  
Lillith tried to look innocent. She failed.  
  
"Might have known."  
  
"He'll be here any minute," began Soun.  
  
"Let go of me, you old fool!" A voice was raised in apparent frustration.  
  
"That would be them," said Setsuna.  
  
-------------  
  
Ranma STARED. This could not be covered by a simple stare or sweatdrop or boggling. No, this required all caps STARING.  
  
"And this is Shinobu, she's 11," said Soun. A short haired girl curtseyed and offered a shy smile.  
  
Another shorthaired girl nudged him. "Here's a program. Lists all the girls, has a photo, their likes and dislikes, what turns 'em on, and how far they'll go. A steal at just 10,000 yen or three materia!"  
  
Soun cleared his throat. The girl sighed, rolled her eyes, and stalked off with a "maybe later."  
  
Genma puzzled. "How many daughters do you *have*, Tendo?"  
  
"Well, in order of age, there's: Morrigan (21), Misato (20), Setsuna (20), Aerith (19), Cinderella (18), Tifa (18), Belle (17), Maya (17), Michiru (17), Makoto (16), Mulan (16), Rei Hino (16), Yuffie (16), Jasmine (15), Rikku (15), Ariel (14), Asuka (14), Rei Ayanami-Tendo (14), Lillith (13), Hotaru (12), Shinobu (11), Sasami (9)." Soun caught his breath.  
  
"Twenty two daughters?" Ranma turned a blank look towards his father. "You engaged me to over twenty different girls at the same time?!"  
  
"Well, my boy, I've always thought you could be a 'man among men' - now's your chance to prove it."  
  
----------  
  
"Sh-sh-shampoo!" Ranma ducked and ran.  
  
"Ranma, you no escape! Shampoo kill!" The Amazon leapt up over the roof, ready to pursue.  
  
"SOUL FIST!" "Deep Submerge!" "Silence Glaive!" "...dead scream..." "Jupiter Thunder ATTACK!" "Eat hot lead!" "AT Field Projectile." "Thrown frypan!"   
  
Mulan made a disgusted noise. "Darn it! You didn't leave anything for *me* to fight!"  
  
Yuffie paused from where she was looting the body. "She's not dead. Maybe you can get in a fight after she's recovered some."  
  
Shampoo groaned. Just her luck she'd run into a Japanese Amazon Village.  
  
---------  
  
"I, Jadeite, claim your energy for the Dark Kingdom!"  
  
"SOUL FIST!" "Deep Submerge!" "Silence Glaive!" "...dead scream..." "Jupiter Thunder ATTACK!" "Eat hot lead!" "AT Field Projectile." "Thrown frypan!" "Kachuu Tenshin Amaguriken - archery version!" "Steal Materia!" "Summon Materia! Bahamut!" "Dolphin Fist!" "Pretty Sammy - Cute Look Attack!" "Fire Soul!"  
  
Ranma bounced up. "There's some villain guy around here, right?"  
  
Everyone pointed to a pile of ash.  
  
Ranma frowned. "Okay, I'll settle for his hench-youma."  
  
Everyone pointed to a second pile of ash.  
  
Ranma went off to sulk, muttering something about not getting to kick anyone's butt lately.  
  
--------  
  
"Ranma Saotome," sneered Tatewaki Kuno, "today is the day I free the fair Rei and the tidy Belle from your sorcerous grasp!"  
  
"Ranma, today is the day I free Michiru from your perversions," proclaimed Haruka, trying to crack her knuckles.  
  
"Ranma! Today is the day I avenge what you did with Jasmine!" Ryouga thumped his chest.  
  
Ranma sighed. "I don't suppose anyone's figured out yet that:  
a) Michiru's only interested in my girl form, and that marrying me would give her an extra measure of respectibility because she feels that she could marry a guy and still make out with my girl form?  
b) I turn into a girl with cold water, and that two of you three still haven't figured it out?  
c) I'm not doing anything with anyone except going out on dates and the only thing interesting in *those* has been when a martial arts battle occurs?"  
  
"Prepare to die, Ranma!"  
  
"I didn't think so," Ranma said, casually spinning Haruka into Kuno's multi-strike thrust attack pattern. "Nobody ever listens." Ranma bounced off Ryouga's head just a moment before a bokken cracked in half on meeting that skull. "It's like all that training I get at the dojo. You wouldn't believe half the crap I have to dodge in the morning." Do the splits under Ryouga's umbrella thrust, uppercut.   
  
---------  
  
"Ranma, I'd like you to meet a very good friend of mine, we met several years ago and she's... a lot nicer than her reputation." Mulan indicated the girl with her.  
  
"The infamous Ranma Saotome, I was beginning to wonder if you really existed. Mulan and a number of the Tendo girls helped me through some dark times, if you hurt them, I will get even."  
  
"Kodachi! It's nothing like that," Mulan made a dismissing gesture. "Ranma has a little problem expressing himself. That's all. Take a look at the father that raised him and you'll forgive relatively small faults."  
  
"Perhaps," said Kodachi Kuno. "If you can forgive me my deranged brother, I can forgive your father to some extent. In any case, the movie starts shortly. Shall we?"  
  
---------  
  
Ariel sighed. She knew she couldn't go out on a regular date, she had to worry about drying out among other things.  
  
Ranma + cold water = Ranma-chan. Who at this point was trying to figure out what the heck to even talk about with Ariel since they had so little in common. Sure, she was cute, but so were most of the girls.  
  
Ranma paused in rowing the boat. Come to think of it, there were only a few of Soun's daughters he had anything in common with and could have a reasonable conversation with. Get along with - most of them fell into that category.  
  
Tifa, Morrigan, Misato, Makoto, Asuka, the younger of the two Rei - all were pretty good martial artists. Nowhere near his level, of course. Well, maybe Tifa and Morrigan.   
  
Ariel interrupted. "Deep thinking?"  
  
"Yeah, I..." Ranma winced as he noticed what was on the boat heading their way.  
  
"I'll get that mermaid yet!" Cruella DeVille called out from her boat. "I'll dine on her flesh and become immortal!"  
  
"I'm not into girl+girl," yelled back Ariel, deliberately misunderstanding. "Meet you back at the docks, Ranma."  
  
---------  
  
Maleficent chuckled as the Heartless poured past her in their hordes.   
  
Captain Hook had been soundly defeated by Ranma and his crew. Ursula had ended up sashimi. Jafar had been turned into a genie and stuffed in a lamp.  
  
She was different though. There would be no evading her forces, and while they were busy with the Heartless, she would take the Princesses and...  
  
"Ahem!"  
  
Maleficent was a Disney character, they did not normally form a large sweatdrop. She did. Slowly and with a certain villainous elegance, she turned.  
  
Ranma cracked his knuckles. Mulan whirled her sword through a quick manuever and held it ready. Saturn brandished her Silence Glaive. Pluto held her Time Key Staff ready. Sailor Neptune checked her hair in the Neptune Mirror. Morrigan smirked and formed a ball of purple lightning.   
  
Maleficent blinked.  
  
Misato clicked the safety on a BFG. Aerith held up the bracelet with her Summon materia. Cinderella looked unhappy. Tifa was grinning and adjusting her "goon smacking" gloves. Sailor Mars held a handful of ofuda/spirit wards. Jasmine was making a couple of experimental passes with a scimitar. Asuka and Rei Ayanami-Tendo had matching assault rifles. Ariel was in her wheelchair and holding a harpoon gun. Pretty Sammy had her ribbon out.  
  
Maleficent pursed her lips thoughtfully.  
  
Shampoo held her sword. Ukyo readied her spatula. Sailor Uranus looked perturbed. Tatewaki Kuno looked bewildered. Kodachi had her clubs out.  
  
"You cannot stop me," said Maleficent. "Behold my power! I..."  
  
Yuffie and Rikku ran away, holding the witch's staff and power orb.  
  
"DIE!" The witch began summoning her power.  
  
An awful lot of attack phrases were used.  
  
----------  
  
The Ranma at Mimir's Well groaned as everyone began a chorus of "Ding Dong, the witch is dead."  
  
Toltiir shrugged. "Disney characters. You have to expect a musical number every so often."  
  
"So who do I end up with in *this* mess," grumbled Ranma.  
  
"Her," indicated the cat.  
  
Ranma fainted as the song "Under The Sea" began playing.  
  
==========  
  
(1) Shinobu Maehara from "Love Hina". Lillith and Morrigan from "Dark Stalkers". Makoto Kino/Sailor Jupiter Hotaru Tomoe/Sailor Saturn Setsuna Meiou/Sailor Pluto Michiru Kaioh/Sailor Neptune from "Sailor Moon." Asuka, Rei, and Misato are from "Evangelion". Various Disney Princesses and Final Fantasy characters their respective sources. Sasami from Tenchi Muyo. 


	21. chapter 21

Retake   
Chapter 21  
  
DISCLAIMER: Ranma cast by R.Takahashi. Sailor Moon cast by N.Takeuchi. Real Bout High School cast by Reiji Saiga and Sora Inoue. Fess name & basic personality hiearchy by C.Stasheff. Legal advice by White Pheonix.  
  
\\\\\  
  
Haruka Ten'ou was not used to feeling uncertain. Angst yes. Cool definitely. She typically covered any doubts she might have with a "just plow straight ahead" gung ho attitude.  
  
When Michiru had shown up, completely healed, she had been quiet about the details.  
  
Haruka had made mad passionate love to Michiru to help deal with the doubts and uncertainties she was experiencing. She had done everything she could, exhausting herself by throwing herself entirely into the act of passion.  
  
Michiru had seemed distant somehow, and when Haruka was spent and exhausted and supposedly asleep, Michiru had gotten a book from the nightstand and read three chapters before turning off the lights and going to sleep.  
  
Haruka hadn't been asleep though. Not at first.  
  
She knew that she was being obstinate, but didn't feel she had a choice. The dragon didn't *intend* to be a danger - he simply *was* a danger. She had to work at it to keep from liking the Senshi Of Death! And that was something else she had trouble with - the Senshi Of Silence And Death should *not* be a cute little shy girl who followed that dragon around like some lovesick schoolgirl!  
  
Haruka was used to bulling through her problems. When she competed against men she did not take an easy going approach or compliment the guys or make comments that would salve egos! If they lost against her, and they did, then they were LOSERS. They'd resent her anyway for being a woman in something considered a "male sport" so why shouldn't she rub their noses in it! She approached other problems in life the same way. She made more waves than friends.  
  
Elsa Gray being an exception.  
  
Studying Michiru over the rim of a coffee cup, Haruka noted the slight smile and studying gaze of Michiru was focussed on ... the television?  
  
On seeing the visage of a particular individual on that TV, Haruka came to a completely incorrect but understandable conclusion: Ryouga Hibiki needed to be taught a lesson!  
  
------  
  
"Mikado Sanzennin, room 204," said the nurse. "Compressed vertebra."  
  
Azusa took a look at all the flowers and brought in her own. "Here ya go, Mickey!"  
  
"That's a wreath, you stupid wench," pointed out Mikado from his hospital bed.  
  
"Maybe you ought to pick something a little less hazardous," pointed out Azusa. "Furinkan has all those martial artists and stuff."  
  
Mikado winced. If AZUSA was pointing this out, it was beyond obvious.  
  
Maybe he ought to check out that school for girls. Saint Hebereke's. Surely he could find a more gentle flower to savor there.  
  
------  
  
The manager looked up and the cigar slowly dropped from his mouth.  
  
Arnold Schwarzzenager times three coming through the doors of your establishment tended to do that.  
  
A hired muscle attempted to interpose himself. One of the musclemen (all dressed in tasteful Italian suits) casually broke the grip and lifted the guy up into the air.  
  
"That was battery," said Arnold in a thick Bavarian accent. "If you try again I will have to squish you like little Bavarian pastry. You understand?"  
  
"Errr," the manager wasn't at all sure what to make of this, but decided to treat this as normal. He simply waited for them to reach the counter.  
  
"You are Kentaro Takaoka, Manager of Sleeze Brand Videos. Makers of 'Sailor V versus the Shibari Cult' among other films." One of the imposing masses of muscle stated as if it were tattooed on Kentaro's forehead.  
  
"That's right, this is a legitimate business, so if you've got any complaints..."  
  
The Arnold who had spoken earlier smiled. It was not a nice smile. It somehow suggested that the person being smiled at was going to have their face removed. By those very teeth. He removed some legal papers from his briefcase and set them down on the counter. "We are from the lawfirm of Hurte Yuu Reale Badde. I'm Mister Badde. You can call me 'Mister Badde.' 'Sailor V' now works for Cyberdyne Corporation. We have an exclusive distribution contract. You've heard of Disney? Cyberdyne's lawyers are about as cute and fluffy as the lawyers who work there. Any further films or usages of her likeness, or of any employees of Cyberdyne, and we will come down on you so hard that your ancestors will beg for mercy and your descendents will curse your name. We are quite prepared to take the case to a jury, and any further action on your part will merit it. Do we understand each other?"  
  
"You can't single me out, everyone's doing it!" Kentaro rallied.  
  
Again that smile. "We are meeting with 'everybody'. Thank you for your time."  
  
--------  
  
Channel 12, Tokyo - "Your NewsCenter"  
  
"Well, Chetu, Cyberdyne is in the spotlight again."  
  
"That's right, Bufi. Cyberdyne has been quietly moving as a number of these Young Senshi have signed up with them for exclusive contracts. Then, with their legal status covered, Cyberdyne has been quietly tracking the sales and distribution of certain 'adult' materials involving those Senshi."  
  
"They followed the money, Chetu. And today they went after it. Lawyers have served papers on manufacturers, distributors, rental companies, and most of the lookalike 'actresses' who appeared in those videos."  
  
"I heard the Anti-Yakuza Task Force became involved," put in Chetu. "In any case the amount of fines and punitive damages for any further sale or distribution of their likenesses has been likened to 'slash and burn' tactics by some critics."  
  
Bufi frowned. "At the announcement today, Sailor Venus had this to say."  
  
Sailor Venus (crying): "We're not even out of High School yet, most of us... And we've been risking our lives to save people and.... then we find this?! You..." (Sailor Mercury and Sailor Pluto hug the crying soldier.)  
  
Chetu purses his lips and considers. "You know. There might be a jury somewhere that wouldn't convict the manufacturers with Venus-san or other Senshi on the stand."  
  
"True, Chetu. Now of course the Senshi who have signed with Cyberdyne get royalties and final approval of the products made of them. Toy manufacturers are scrambling to curry favor with Cyberdyne."  
  
"Not only that, Bufi. Clothing manufacturers, cosmetic companies, and others. It seems that the catgirl Senshi and several other of the new sentai are also signing up with Cyberdyne. That leaves only a few Senshi left who can be brutally exploited in this manner."  
  
"You have to wonder how long that will last. Oh, and we reached a Nodoka Saotome who had this reaction to finding out that her son had a harem:"  
  
NODOKA: "My son is *so* manly!" (Waves around little Japanese-flag-fans.)  
  
Bufi considered that. "Do you think she knows about his curse?"  
  
"That he turns into a girl with cold water and back into a boy with hot?" Chetu nodded. "She had this to say."  
  
NODOKA: "He manages to collect a harem despite this curse? I have such a manly son!"  
  
"Takes all kinds," said Bufi. "On to the lighter side. A Russian defense minister has asked Sweden once again to stop hacking into their Mars probe data and leaving images of scantily clad buxom blondes..."  
  
--------  
  
Ami smiled as she stood and let the devices scan her. "Scholarships?" Medical school *was* terribly expensive.  
  
"Yes, simple enough to do without releasing your identity," said Fess. "There should be enough left over for a 'youma victim support fund'. We're also dealing with the frivolous lawsuits."  
  
"'Lawsuits?'" Minako asked as Ami's scan ended and her own began. "This is Japan, not America. Most people will go to almost any measure *not* to lose face in a legal battle."  
  
"True," agreed Fess. "That still leaves things like Mrs Yotsuyama and her claim that her young son was psychologically traumatized by seeing young girls in sailor suits fighting a demon and that he still suffers nightmares. In one reality, an American superhero named Kestral ended up leaving his own country due to legal problems like that occurring. In Japan these are the exception, in America they would be the rule."  
  
"I had no idea there were so many products tied into our names," exclaimed Ami as she put her outer clothes back on.  
  
Minako looked up from her perusal of flyers and catalogs. "Can we get samples before we approve anything?"  
  
"Good idea," agreed Fess. That was odd. "Minako, can you hold your hands above your head for a second scanning?"  
  
Minako tried not to worry. Naturally it didn't work. "Something wrong?"  
  
"Physically you're all quite healthy." Fess' voice sounded puzzled.  
  
Morgana didn't look up from her monitor. "In each case the spells have amplified your powers and given you extra abilities based not only on your own desires and interpretations of the role - but those of previous individuals. Hotaru was concerned about appearing grown up or adult and had witnessed catgirls in one of those projections. Which is why everyone since then has gotten Bunnygirl, Catgirl, and Maid transformations. Just be glad that she's fairly naive about some of the more hentai stuff out there. Especially here in Japan."  
  
Setsuna, still just quietly listening, merely winced.  
  
"At that point there still wasn't anything major," continued Morgana. "You like him and regard him as a prince of your Moon Kingdom, and that becomes more real with every conversion. If Tsukino-san ever converts, it'll be official. Meiou added essentially nothing. Her conversion was a surprise, and if she hadn't accepted it to get out of her geas - likely wouldn't have been affected."  
  
Setsuna studied her fingers, not meeting anyone's gaze.  
  
Fess decided to interrupt. "All of this has been mapped out. When Doctor Mizuno joined her own Gate powers were increased and she gained some other abilities because of her own subconscious desires. Ami likewise didn't add anything new, but gained the abilities of each template in its own turn. For example, in her catgirl form, Doctor Mizuno's saliva contains an antiseptic compound which could be used to treat minor scrapes and wounds. Prior made catgirls such as Hotaru lack this talent. Ami's catgirl form has it. Minako, however, has a completely unexpected variable. Indicating that someone or something has altered the pattern. Minako, could you please shift to each of your forms?"  
  
Minako switched to her blonde catgirl form.  
  
"This is about what would be expected. The original template by Hotaru had increased strength and extremely good motor skills. The antiseptic saliva and increased sensitivity provided by Doctor Mizuno. The spatial awareness senses provided by Ami. A neural suppression factor has been added however." Fess was puzzled. "As this is a magical transformation any correction I can make would be quite temporary."  
  
Morgana quickly looked the frightened blonde over and then got her to transform back to human and then to Senshi. "Hmmm. Maybe she was just taking the comments about 'mindless' too literally and added it. It doesn't affect either of the other forms and is mainly affecting her speech centers."  
  
Minako switched back to catgirl. "Nyau nyaa nnyuu mew mew meow?" Her eyes went wide. "Mia mas mi? Myi mian miay mianynyin?!"  
  
"Actually, I think if you practice you'll be *mostly* understandable," said Morgana. "You're right, Fess, this doesn't fit Aino's personality at all."  
  
Minako switched to Maid and Bunnygirl.  
  
"Maid is actually more intelligent - the corpus callosum and left brain activity levels jump. Bunnygirl has a similar neural suppression to catgirl, but it's more generalized in the right side of the brain dealing with rational thinking. Again, this does not fit Aino's personality and was added after Ami," was Fess' analysis.   
  
"Huh?" Bunnygirl Minako asked.  
  
"Change back," advised Morgana.  
  
Minako let out a deep breath. That had been - actually kind of relaxing.  
  
"Try to find another form, Minako," said Morgana. "I see another one but it's exact nature might tell us what or who added it."  
  
Minako thought, strained, and changed outfits.  
  
"EEEEP!" Minako was trying to cover herself though actually the outfit *felt* perfectly normal.  
  
Morgana shook her head. "That's *not* a traditionally correct harem outfit. More 'I Dream Of Jeannie'."  
  
"Now THAT fits her profile," said Setsuna, earning a dirty look from Minako. "She grew up watching a lot of TV."  
  
Everyone nodded at that. Except Fess of course.  
  
Minako looked thoughtful and changed again- revealing another form. "EEEK!" (THUD!)  
  
"THAT doesn't fit Aino-san's personality at least," was Morgana's impression. "Looks uncomfortable too. Especially with her fainted like that."  
  
"Eeeep!" Ami announced trying absolutely not to look.  
  
"Whoever supplied that particular template is rather more familiar with certain perversions than Minako-chan," summarized Setsuna. "After she wakes up, I would suggest getting her to turn back and never go there again."  
  
"Perhaps it was a total stranger," suggested Morgana. "None of these Senshi seem the type to wear something like that. Switching into it during a fight would be ludicrous. As soon as she switches back I'll try to 'lock' it off."  
  
--------  
  
"Ranma not like this game."  
  
"Ukyo hoping this over with soon. She not like talking like bimbo."  
  
"Shampoo not know what Spatula Girl mean."  
  
"China Girl not know what Ranma mean? We is wake up in box - all wear Chinese banner dress. All have sign around neck say 'Free To Good Home' and all tie up in ribbons? Ranma not even mention how we is all talk like China Girl now! Ranma only refer China Girl as China Girl and Spatula Girl as Spatula Girl too."  
  
"Ukyo hope Dragonboy fix soon. Ukyo hands get tired."  
  
-------  
  
Greylle yawned and stretched. Then stopped. "Oh crap."  
  
"Problem?" Fess asked.  
  
Greylle frowned. "I'm heading to the vault. Run a full medical scan on me after I've dropped the human shape."  
  
"It would be easier to report if I know what I'm looking for," said Fess, noting the extra tension and anxiety in voice and body language.  
  
"You don't have a full physiological database on Aramarian silver dragons, so you'll have to send the findings on. Amaterasu maybe. It's a pity Edema is no longer available. The only time I've felt this kind of creeping fatigue before, I went into the dragonsleep." It was a pity about that lack, otherwise he would have been able to adapt an mnemonic device and given himself full fluency in Japanese.  
  
Fess understood now. Dragons went through periods of hibernation where their bodies grew into their next stage, where they recharged and metabolized among other things. The period of hibernation often lasting months or years at a stretch where the dragon was relatively helpless.  
  
Fess further speculated that the recent battles and merger with the ginzuishou might have accelerated the process. If so, then the sleep for him to go from Young Adult to Adult status should be part of the database.  
  
Scanning began as soon as he transformed to his real shape.  
  
-------  
  
Ryouga Hibiki sighed and stirred his campfire. Things were not pleasant here. Maybe it was time to go for a training journey. A long one. He'd heard Tibet had some good martial artists that weren't always saying something like:  
  
"RYOUGA HIBIKI! PREPARE TO DIE!"  
  
Yeah, things like that.  
  
Ryouga watched as his cup ramen exploded. He hated days like this. Looking up at the bishonen, he hazarded a guess. "Let me see. You wouldn't happen to believe that I've somehow wronged you and you're out to get revenge."  
  
"You've stolen my girlfriend, you fiend, so I'm prepared to pay you back for whatever spell you used." Haruka was peeved.  
  
Ryouga nodded. Probably Ranma telling stories about him.  
  
What could have been a great fight sequence between Haruka Ten'ou and Ryoga Hibiki *could* have followed.  
  
Instead:  
  
"There he is! And he has an accomplice!"  
  
"Enemy to women!" "Pervert!" "Smash! Kill! Destroy!"  
  
The Shinsengumi had arrived.  
  
"Heh, cousin Ryoga, how nice to see you here."  
  
Shizuma Kusanagi had arrived as well.  
  
"Aiyah! Airen is in big fight!"  
  
Plus Ryouga's Amazon fiancees.  
  
This wasn't a martial arts fight. This was just a chaotic melee.  
  
During which, Haruka's pager went off and she had to leave. By that point hardly anyone noticed.  
  
------  
  
Akane thumped onto the floor and had to admit something. This was inordinately painful, humiliating, tiring, and she *hated* it.  
  
However, she was moving around easier and when normal gravity returned it became fairly easy to see that her workouts in high gravity fields were having the desired effects. She was leaner, stronger, and faster than she had been two days ago when a slightly higher gravity field had kept her bedridden. Now she was up and moving, though with frequent rests.  
  
It was strange that Ranma and Shampoo weren't around. Though they denied it, the two were anxious to learn any strange or esoteric martial arts manuevers they could.  
  
Akane turned a glance towards the polearms.  
  
There was an older Tendo-ryuu than Anything Goes. Her mother's school. The naginata based style had been the Tendo specialty for generations. An innocent question to Greylle had discovered that he had knowledge of that Art and that if she wanted, Fess could arrange for her to learn it.  
  
It might aggravate her father, who had always held that the Anything Goes style was the most powerful style, but Akane would have been willing to give up quite a lot if she could learn that style. Kasumi was to start training in the style, anxious to get away from the house for periods of time. Nabiki was less interested in that, but *did* want to see if she could find work with Cyberdyne. Especially if the Senshi started doing better in their fights.  
  
Straining against her increased weight, Akane completed another situp and felt the muscles start that twitching sensation that was quickly followed by the muscles suddenly having the apparent strength of overcooked noodles.  
  
"End gravity enhancement," Akane said to the air, then realized that the machines were often self-aware. "Please."  
  
"Eight gravities, six, four, two, standard gravity achieved. Will you want the whirlpool Tendo-san?"  
  
"Yes, please," responded Akane. Nothing like a hot soak with the waters swirling around her after straining like that. It kept the muscle strain from stiffening up if she did it right away.  
  
Akane flopped back after a moment. "Uhm..."  
  
Knowing that Akane had a great deal of pride and stubborness, a Nurse unit just happened to come by and help her to the whirlpool "because she was just heading that way herself."  
  
"What's that?" Akane asked as she settled into the waters with a pleasent sigh.  
  
The Nurse checked. "Oh that. Device being developed that utilizes the same technology that remade your body. Rebuild a body based on what your preferences are. Cosmetic surgery to the genetic level. Useful if the aliens turn out to be similar to the Gardeners in that respect."  
  
"What respect is that?" Akane's attention was mainly on the device and the considerable temptation it represented.  
  
"In at least one timeline, the Gardeners developed a virus that was used to weaken the human race prior to their conquering. The virus affected the human brain chemistry to dampen aggression. People just stopped fighting as it spread." The Nurse indicated the device again. "Splicing in as much as 2% from another species rendered the virus inoperable. Genetic diseases could also be reversed by such a device. With the prototype finished, making additional units would be less difficult."  
  
"Oh," said Akane wistfully. "How nice."  
  
-------  
  
Fess chose as his holographic image the persona of a proper English Butler, fairly old and dignified.   
  
Mambo Jack for his part, dropped the usual act.  
  
Mambo Jack was real on some timelines, an urban myth in others. A cigar smoking wise-cracking cynical Humfrey Bogart sort of fellow who had operated in the Pacific prior to World War II as a smuggler and independent freighter captain. After the onset of that war, he smuggled Chinese out of Japanese occupied cities.  
  
He wasn't an altruist however. Nor was he a hero. He did many a dark and dirty deed along the way.  
  
He also had a reputation as a womanizer who not only had a girl in every port, in some ports he had all the girls.  
  
When he finally died in his 70s, a jealous husband finally catching up with him, he had gained such Urban Legend status that he became the unofficial Indonesian god of male sexual prowess. Not, as he would hasten to correct, fertility.  
  
He was more hostile to women than any other group, being cynical and finding himself often in politically correct crowds whereas he himself was unrepetent in his political incorrectness. He was crude, foul-mouthed, and totally unlike what 99% of all Westerners would expect to find in Heaven.  
  
Naturally, he ended up in the Rival Relief Office. When he was among friends he tended to be less crude and annoying.  
  
"Idiot jes' figurred it out, eh?" Mambo snorted and slugged down a quick glass of mead. "Man these Norsies like this baby formula. Pfeh. Anyway. Adult is age category six. He's currently a Young Adult. So, allowing for da translation of Aramar months to terrestrial/Western, ye've got roughly seven months he'll be outta commish."  
  
"Seven months? That isn't so bad," said Fess.  
  
Mambo Jack belched. "Providing it don't get interrupted. It's probably all them fights he's going through like that bit on that Japanese Empire world. Draws on the ginzuishou but it goes kinda both ways. So he's gonna molt and shed and all that crap. Sasami's running predictors now. Says he'll likely be addin' another eleven to twenty feet on the body or so. Mebbe half that on da tail as well. Prolly go up a level as a cleric too. If he's jes getting the first signs, he prolly ain't gotta worry none for another two or three months. Less he gets into major scuffles or something and has to draw more power."  
  
"Very well, Mister Jack. I have to go now, I have just received word of another moster attack and I'm summoning the Senshi."  
  
"Yeah yeah right. Sheesh. Wish I could get something with more kick around here."  
  
-------  
  
Akane noticed everyone was busy and just decided to take a quick look at this thing. Hmmm. Interesting.  
  
Akane Tendo brought up two files. One human and one tigergirl.  
  
Her breath caught as she pulled up the tigergirl. She had been strong and at one with the Art. She had been fast and beautiful and had felt more alive than ever.  
  
In Japan, everyone had their roles. By being a girl, she had her role in the society. She'd spent a lot of time fighting in a nonphysical sense being forced into that role, and angry at the boys (and to some extent girls) who tried to force her into that mold.  
  
As a tigergirl, there had been no pre-existing template. The pressure had been eased. She had been free to define herself.  
  
The rotating 3D hologram of the tigergirl mesmerized her.  
  
There could have been one of two reactions in Japan. One would have made her a pet, a nonhuman or at least subhuman. She would have been shunned at the very least. The other reaction was what had actually occurred.  
  
She had been accepted. She had been that cultural icon since Osamu Tezuka had come up with the first catgirl back in the sixties. She had been the funloving and frolicking allegory of all women. Boys who had wanted to beat her human self and conquer her had shied away from the fanged grin and cruel claws. Others had admired her. Some of the girls had been quite obviously envious. Most had admired her. A few had scratched her behind the ear or that place along the spine just above the hips.  
  
If she had been viewed as a pet, she would have been the school mascot at the very least.  
  
She had been beautiful and terrible, cute and cuddly, strong and swift and capable.  
  
Akane sighed and looked over the displays. Then blinked. According to what she was reading she could add just a bit of the tigergirl to what she was now.  
  
She wrestled with the temptation to do a 2%. She doubted that would even be enough for people to even notice.   
  
No. She'd just go back to the whirlpool. She couldn't do something like that.  
  
No. Just go back to the whirlpool. No problem. Just go right back. Yeah. Any minute now.  
  
-------  
  
Luna and Artemis groaned.  
  
"The tentacle monster again," said Artemis.   
  
Sailor Moon pointed across the rooftops to the misshapen beast a half mile away. "Okay. Go get it!"  
  
"Are you *nuts*?!" Mars pointed at the beast as well. "Ami said it was over nine hundred feet tall! There's not enough spirit wards in Tokyo to handle that!"  
  
"I didn't mean us, Mars-chan," agreed Sailor Moon. She'd had time to think about this.  
  
Sailor Uranus considered attacking it briefly, but was distracted by how distanced Neptune was keeping herself.  
  
"She means us, I think," said Mercury, holding her hand up. "Senshi Gear On!" (Vreeeeeeeee!)  
  
Saturn and Pluto held their hands up. "Senshi Gear On!" (Vreeeeeee!)(Vreeeeeee!)  
  
Venus hesitated, not having gotten around to telling anyone. Oh well. "Senshi Gear ON!" (Vreeeeeeee!)  
  
A set of Maid androids brought in some LaZboy recliners and a big screen TV for the remaining Senshi who just gaped at the display.  
  
"Senshi Gear ON,  
To fight for right,  
With love and justice   
and overwhelming might!"  
  
"Blue Dolphin online," announced Sailor Mercury from her seat in her Mercury mecha. "Scanning target!"  
  
"Senshi Gear ON,  
Time to make evil pay!  
And take a break   
from the everyday!"  
  
"Violet Dragonfly," quietly said Saturn from her own mecha. "Atomic batteries to power. Turbines to speed."  
  
"Soldiers of love rise to the fight!  
Now is time to do what is right,  
strike a blow for freedom and love,  
time to go beyond and above!"  
  
"Jade Owl," said Pluto, the monitor showing her own mecha's interior, "all systems ready and standing by."  
  
"Senshi Gear ON!  
You've got beauty and you've got class!  
But now it's time to kick some @$$!"  
  
"Venus Gundam," declared Sailor Venus. "Summoning BFG from hyperspatial storage!"  
  
Lightning flared as the rifle appeared in the hands of the Venus Gundam.  
  
"When they say Big eFffing Gun, they *mean* Big eFfing Gun," observed Sailor Jupiter as she leaned back in her recliner and ordered one of those drinks with the little umbrellas.  
  
"They definitely need to work on the lyrics," suggested Mars as she ordered an iced tea - green.  
  
"Senshi Gear ON!" (Vreeeeeeee)  
  
The assembled Sailor Senshi stared at Sailor Neptune as she brought a glittering bracelet up.  
  
"Senshi Gear ON!  
Evil threats are drawing nigh,  
So you're gonna make 'em die!"  
  
After being beamed up to the newly arrived mecha, Neptune's image appeared on the display.  
  
"Emerald Starfish, ready."  
  
"Sending targetting data," announced Mercury. "Link weapons to my console."  
  
"Breee?!" The tentacle monster was not at all happy about this.  
  
"Mercury Sonic Cannon!" "Saturn Laser Cannon." "Pluto Wing Missiles." "Venus Particle Beam Rifle!" "Neptune Starcannon."  
  
"Overkill," commented Sailor Uranus as the tentacle monster disintegrated.  
  
"Don't sound so envious," commented Sailor Mars.  
  
Tuxedo Kamen appeared, assessed the situation, took a seat near Usagi and requested a large soda.  
  
The mecha vanished, the Senshi reappeared.  
  
Spotting a camera crew two buildings over, Sailor Venus posed. "Fighting for truth and love and superior firepower, yeah!"  
  
One of the Maid units held up a hand. "Sailor Senshi, the police are requesting assistance in Bokuto precinct. Can you assist?"  
  
"No," said Luna, "we only respond to Sailor business."  
  
"Sure," indicated Sailor Venus, turning up the perky level. "What kind of situation is it?"  
  
"...but..." Luna went into muttering complaints.  
  
"Car didn't clear the tracks, train collision, multiple injuries, traffic difficulties making rescue difficult." The Maid unit cocked her head to the side. "I can relay specific data on the way if you want to go."  
  
"Oh really, Bokuto is sixty miles away," said Sailor Uranus, "those giant robots of yours are hardly practical for..."  
  
Sailor Venus was ignoring the nay-sayers. "Everyone! Call your transports!"  
  
Sailor Moon panicked. "You mean a Sailor Teleport?!"  
  
With a roar of engines, an orange patterned jet-cycle swept in low. Venus flipped up and landed perfectly in the seat, the cycle seeming to adjust itself in midflight to best catch her.  
  
Sailor Mercury waited for her vehicle, a blue patterned 1957 Thunderbird, to pull even and get in less flamboyantly.  
  
Sailor Saturn *wanted* a dragon to fly her. She settled for a ride with Sailor Pluto in a white flying Stutz Bearcat.  
  
Another vehicle arrived as Sailor Neptune demurely summoned and took her seat in a Silver Rolls Royce Limousine with one of the Maid units driving.   
  
Sailor Neptune paused for a moment and regarded those remaining on the roof. "Might I offer a ride?"  
  
Sailor Uranus turned away. "Neptune. Don't tell me you fell for the lies and temptations of that dragon. He cannot be as concerned for you as I am. More, we have to be wary of the hidden cost."  
  
One of the Maid units interrupted. "Uranus-san? They've already left."  
  
Uranus blinked and surveyed the roof.  
  
"Uranus-san," said a reporter, making his way over, "what about the recent release of the movie 'Sailor Uranus & The Biker Gang' by Sleaze Productions?"  
  
"The who the what?" Sailor Uranus asked.  
  
--------  
  
"...mutter... mumble... Dark Kingdom plot... undefended underside... drop our guard..."  
  
Everyone else ignored Luna.  
  
Usagi's eyes were big. "Wow. This is so..."  
  
Sailor Neptune sat back on one of the seats and managed to look quite at home. "A fully stocked limousine with refrigerator, a freezer, a mini-bar, and similar items. The limo is a 'loaner' - and, oh, Yvette could you tell them of the capabilities of this vehicle?"  
  
The Maid nodded from where she was driving. "Yes, ma'amselle. The Rolls is capable of flight speeds in excess of Mach 2, though at current altitude and population density we are only proceeding at roughly 75.758 miles per hour. The hull is capable of pressure depths of 1000 feet when submerged, while life support will allow for 36 hours of contained environment before the air scrubbers begin to fail. If a longer stay is indicated, it would be suggested that you use your combat vehicles - which have greater range and operational parameters."  
  
"I could learn to like this," sighed Jupiter as she relaxed back into her seat after finding the "Heat/Massage" controls and set it to backrub.  
  
Usagi squealed. "Oooh, they've got the wreck on the TV. Look, they're going back over the battle."  
  
------  
  
"...Channel 12 NewsCenter. It appears that the Sailor Senshi Civil War continues but the rift may be mending. And we've gotten our first view of what the Senshi can do when not divided. Our man on the scene, Skip Hideyoshi. Skip?"  
  
"We just witnessed the Sailor Senshi as they were before their year off and they definitely have more competence than in previous battles, Chetu. It took just over a minute for them to deploy and destroy the giant tentacle monster using some fabulous new mecha."  
  
"Well it's odd for a sentai team *not* to have gadgets," agreed Chetu.   
  
"So roughly half the team sat back and watched while the rebels within the group responded to the menace." Skip's gravely concerned expression went to slightly more upbeat. "However, most of the group responded to a police call and the Rebel Senshi gave rides to the Old Guard and are en route to the accident you were just talking about."  
  
"So there *are* signs that the two groups will cooperate in the future. Good work Skip."  
  
------  
  
"We have arrived," announced Yvette. "Do you want me to land on a rooftop or on the street or simply hover while you leap into action?"  
  
"Hover. Open the door. Altitude of 40 feet." Sailor Neptune shifted to Catgirl Neptune. Seeing the questioning gazes, she explained. "I can take falls and make better leaps in this form."   
  
"Stop drooling, Artemis, and help me think of a way to stop this from getting out of hand."  
  
Artemis blinked. "I think it got out of hand a long time ago, Luna."  
  
-------  
  
Yvette circled the area, relaying information to Fess and the Tokyo PD as well as using the belly-cameras to feed to Channel 12 News. Why them? Because so far they'd been the most positive with regard to Cyberdyne and the affiliated Senshi.   
  
Because of this they were also first in line for promotional merchandise and advertising dollars, which merely increased Channel 12's desire to see Cyberdyne do well and the Senshi recover from their current problems.  
  
The news footage, as was standard practice, was sold by Channel 12 world wide. AFTER it was aired first by them of course. Which meant that CNN showed it as well.  
  
While the "Old Guard" was nowhere to be seen, the "Young Rebels" were working the accident.   
  
And then some.  
  
Water doused flames as Neptune concentrated on that aspect of the accident.   
  
Saturn poured healing energies into the worst hurt as determined by Mercury performing triage and doing what she could with her knowledge of medicine.  
  
Pluto used her ability to sidestep distances by utilizing her ability to reach the Gate Of Time and brought a team of Nurse (androids) and some EMTs, though she had to do it one at a time as these were not Silver Millenium personnel.  
  
Sailor Venus utilized a grapple on her cycle to hook the remains of the car and clear it from the track.  
  
Two bunnygirls used their android strength to lift the derailed train back onto the track.  
  
Even the worst of the detractors of the Sailor Senshi had to grudgingly admit that they'd handled the situation well.  
  
As for those few who had held onto their "Sailor V FanClub" membership badges? They felt they were vindicated.   
  
-------  
  
"We've had four members drop out," complained one of the Hentai Sorcerers.   
  
"Wimps," exclaimed another. "Just because one girl makes a tearful speech on TV. Boo hoo. They wouldn't have been able to go the course anyway."  
  
"So who's the next daimon ready to go?" One of the Hentai Sorcerers had been playing around with spells and was now a Hentai Sorceress, but she wasn't going to let a little setback stop her from her goal.   
  
"Latex!" A daimon declared.  
  
A brief pause. "I dunno, man. The whole plastic and rubber thing just don't work for me."  
  
"Results are what matters," said Latex's creator. "Wait till I finish boosting her powers!"  
  
"Yeah yeah whatever. I still think Tastee did a good job."   
  
"Wimp."  
  
"Up yours, Shin!"  
  
"You wanna make something of it, *wimp!*"  
  
"Ha! Wait till *my* daimon cuts loose!"  
  
"Aw shuttup!"  
  
"Aw crap! Here comes the cops again. Remind me to kick Higari's butt."  
  
"Don't worry, we've got those 'nothing going on here' spells up to Level 4 now. With the dyslexia and mute spells we hit him with, any other confessions he gives will be complete gobbledygook."  
  
"Yeah, but sooner or later they'll figure something out. We'll have to conquer the world before then."  
  
------  
  
Ami sat down with her mother and did a little after-juku bonding.   
  
Well, that's what it ended up being. What it had started out as was going over the latest slew of products. One of the manufacturers, Bandai, had come up with a set of toys and had rushed some prototypes out to see if they could get the official Sailor Mercury Approved Product(tm) label.  
  
There was the cute Sailor Mercury SD plushie, and the even cuter Catgirl Mercury plushie, and the plastic Sailor Mercury doll that they wanted Cyberdyne to go in with them on, and the Sailor Mercury swimsuit, and the Catgirl Mercury pajamas, and the action figure of the Mercury Blue Dolphin mecha, and the Sailor Senshi teaset, and pillows and toothbrushes and a few other items.  
  
Fess had come up with a few gadgets he could mass produce, thereby making Cyberdyne even more a legitimate business. Ami giggled so hard she shifted to catgirl on hearing the Mercury Wrist Chronometer proclaim "In the name of Mercury, don't forget to brush your teeth!"  
  
Setsuna was off designing clothing and looking happier than she'd ever been before.  
  
And as the Time Gate was being guarded right now by three OGRE units (mile long sentient tanks with weapons bristling from every surface) that wasn't that concerning.  
  
If the Dead Moon family had appeared they would have faced enough firepower to make the Invincible Shadow consider easier targets to go after.  
  
Ami however shared a brief time of laughter where mother and daughter briefly put aside all other roles and concerns for an afternoon.  
  
------  
  
Ryouga had been a dozen feet away at the start of things. When Nabiki had unleashed her spell he had been skimmed across the ground and he'd landed in a canal over three miles distant. It had taken him several hours to recover.  
  
Happosai, however, had been the target.  
  
Which was why, on a cold and lonely island in the Bering Strait (far far away), a shriveled old man stood atop a snow drift and shook his fist at the heavens. "Why me?!"  
  
At which point he sneezed and tumbled back down the slope.  
  
------  
  
Haruka watched from a distance. Michiru seemed normal, mostly, if you discounted that she seemed more casually friendly with those other girls.  
  
"Excuse me, are you going to order anything?"  
  
Haruka glared at the waitress.  
  
"Guess not..." The waitress scurried off.   
  
Haruka returned to watching. How could Michiru have done this?! Unless...  
  
Of course! Michiru was faking it! She had infiltrated the dragon's organization and was working her way into a position to do serious damage. Once there she could bypass any defenses the dragon had and bring the ginzuishou back.  
  
Sailor Moon was too much of an idiot to be trusted with that much power. Best they hold onto it after prying it away.  
  
That being the case Haruka considered her own role. How best to back Michiru up?  
  
By distracting attention from her, obviously. Haruka wondered how best to do that before realizing that she was probably already doing a good job - by being the antagonist she'd draw attention away from Michiru.  
  
So she'd just challenge the dragon to a rematch. That would get everyone away from the complex or distracted so that Michiru could deliver the death blow.  
  
"...dragonbane..."   
  
Haruka's attention was immediately grabbed by that phrase and she made her way closer to that table.  
  
--------  
  
Cologne hadn't batted an eye to find that the Chinese Amazons had two new recruits. All she'd said was that she had to get rid of something she was carrying before she could examine them.   
  
Ukyo had asked what she was carrying that was more important than fixing this problem. Cologne had said one word.  
  
Shampoo looked ready to leap through the window and keep running until she hit China. "Great Grandmother what you carry THAT for?!"  
  
"Shampoo. Quiet. Sit down. You draw attention to us." Cologne glared at her great granddaughter as if considering trimming the family tree.  
  
It was enough to clue two reluctant draftees that this was serious crap.  
  
Ukyo hated sounding like a bimbo but she had to ask. "What mean 'dragonbane'? Why you have?"  
  
Cologne let out a deep breath. "Over a millenia ago there were creatures of fantasy. There was a Moon Kingdom and an Earth Kingdom. The Earth Kingdom was suborned by an evil power and attacked the Moon Kingdom and both were destroyed. Some evil was left however, and it sought to recreate its former majesty. There is a special wood that grows where a form of magic called 'death magic' was especially strong. That wood is called 'dragonbane.'"  
  
"Matriarich have handy in case dragon turn out be bad guy?" Ranma asked. "Ranma think that okay. He not bad guy. Weird but no bad."  
  
Cologne took a lead puzzlebox out of her robes and twisted and shifted the sides rapidly. From it she took a discolored steel box. From the steel box she took a smaller box made of some black material. She set that on the table. "Look but if you value your life, do not touch. Only the most innocent can touch this material."  
  
Ranma and Ukyo cautiously peered in. Shampoo crossed herself and started praying. She wasn't Christian but at times like this why not cover all your bases?  
  
"Wood arrowhead?" Ranma looked at the oily old hunk of wood and was about to dismiss it as nothing special.  
  
Cologne began repacking the item, very carefully. "The more powerful you are, the more magic you have, the more chi you can draw on or use, the more deadly the poison. In the crypts is the body of the last person to try and take the arrowhead to use against a martial artist who had threatened us. She died eighty five years ago. She only screamed for about five minutes, though as near as we can tell she died instantly."  
  
Ranma and Ukyo blinked at the idea of someone screaming for five minutes *after* they had died.  
  
"...horrible..." Shampoo offered.  
  
"One of the reasons our tribe started on the whole 'breeding for strength' and 'killing or marrying outsiders' were items like this," said Cologne as she locked the lead container back up. "This could kill the dragon. There's no doubt in my mind now that all it would take is one shot with a bow and the dragon would die. He is a creature of magic who uses magic and has a powerful chi. One would have to find someone, an innocent child, who could use it. Whoever used it would sicken and die too. Fortunately this can be put away. There are some weapons too terrible to use." (1)  
  
------  
  
Michiru relaxed in her seat. Things had gotten interesting. Of course, now she knew the truth. Which was that there actually had been a dragon prince of the kingdom. It would be interesting with him mixing things up in this lifetime.  
  
He was also quite attractive, and the idea of finding a guy attractive was fairly new to Michiru Kaioh. She'd found herself checking guys out and comparing notes with those Inner Senshi and it had been quite amusing.  
  
Of course, there were benefits to working with their prince. Legal protection for one. Michiru held up a plushie SD Sailor Uranus and smirked. Free samples.  
  
She had an appointment as Michiru Kaioh for later that day as a violinist. Apparently Cyberdyne had a "Young Talent Development" program going, which at least partly acted as a cover for their civilian identities. Funds could be moved from the Senshi royalties and fees to the program without problems. However an additional benefit was that those of them that had marketable talents (such as herself) could make use of agents and company resources to further their careers.  
  
Cyberdyne benefitted from the publicity, some marketing share, and the inevitable tie-in merchandise.  
  
On the other hand, Michiru Kaioh had access to sound recording equipment that was phenomenal and could obtain backup musicians for whatever whim struck her.  
  
She also had her new attacks. Michiru smiled at the memory of that. Her Deep Submerge had been joined by Submarine Reflection using her Talisman. She'd used High Pressure Wave to manifest a continuous stream of water to combat the fire. Mirror Image could replicate herself. She wouldn't be able to use many other attacks while keeping that up, but the impromptu violin concerto she'd treated herself to had been amusing. So far she hadn't gotten a chance to use Storm Burst but weather summoning was tricky and that was her Ultimate level attack anyway. Not something to manifest on a whim.  
  
Her Starfish mecha was beautiful and elegant and had a wonderful sound system. Though she was told that Crab mecha had been originally intended for her, she'd decided the lower power Starfish suited her better.  
  
Pouring herself a glass of champagne, Michiru raised a toast to her future.  
  
Now if only Haruka would drop that stubborn streak of hers.  
  
------  
  
A holographic screen displayed information. Translation and analysis of data continued. Schedules were revised.  
  
------  
  
She winced, dreading the reaction. She remembered the hostility. She remembered the comments. She remembered the videos. In school the previous day she hadn't been able to escape it. She'd even seen the little SD Venus-chan doll that someone had thrown away in a trashcan.  
  
Now she had just leapt to the roof of a building, intending to try out her new abilities and attacks and ride her Venus Cycle out where nobody could see her.  
  
However, there had apparently been a concert going. She could recognize those marionette Senshi over there in their civilian guise. A crowd of a few thousand gathered. There was an awkward silence as the band stopped and looked, followed by the audience looking to see what had caused the momentary lull.  
  
"There she is, ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for Sailor Venus! The V-Babe!"  
  
The roar was an almost physical wave.  
  
Sailor Venus blinked and stared. They were... applauding?! Nobody was laughing at her? No lecherous comments shouted from the crowd. They...  
  
"They like me! They really like me!"  
  
She posed and gave them the V sign. They returned it and applauded louder.  
  
Sailor Venus leapt away, calling for her Venus Cycle and circling the park once before jetting away.  
  
She put it on autopilot. She had something in her eye and it wouldn't do to have the crowd think she was crying.  
  
Behind her she could hear the band play.  
  
"Yeah baby, she's got it!  
She's your Venus, she's on fire,  
At your desire!"  
  
Darn pesky dust in her eyes.  
  
========  
  
(1) Dragonbane was thought up as a result of thinking through why in fantasy worlds dragons weren't more common or monsters haven't overrun things. Steeped in death magic, something that is anti-magic, anti-life. Not merely negating those energies, but actively counter to them. The more powerful you are, the more poisonous this would be. Only very young sickly characters would be able to resist the poison long enough to use it. 


	22. aliens in the outfield

Retake, chapter 22  
  
DISCLAIMER: Greylle Shard, the Rival Relief Office, the Barely Adequate Force, Toltiir, and various other concepts the demented products of a strange imagination. Most everything else tm or (c) someone else.  
  
--------  
  
One day. Just one day.  
  
Viva la difference, said one Minako Aino, aka Sailor Venus, alias V-babe.  
  
Gone were the signs proclaiming [Sailor V vs Tentacula II]. Gone were the calls for a "Magical Girls Control Act." Gone were the exotic dancers in tear-off versions of sailor fuku. Almost gone were the criticisms calling for Sailor V's retirement as a washed up old has-been. Gone were things that had practically brought her to tears like seeing that Sailor Venus plushie in the trash bin.  
  
People on the commuter train saw the near-manic grin on the girl's face and weren't sure what to make of it.  
  
Over there, a little girl with her Sailor V (with Mask) plushie! Minako's eyes whipped over to where a display of the new Sailor V SD keychains and schoolbag bobs were being put up. Zip! Over there was a poster stating that her action figure and her giant robot mecha the Venus-Gundam would be available from Bandai by the end of the month.  
  
It was *not* the potential revenue she would get from royalties from the sales that caused Minako's heart to take wing and stars to appear in her eyes.  
  
During the ride out to test her new powers she'd been busy.  
  
Cat in a tree here. Fire in a building where the survivors were cut off and the V-Cycle provided a way to ferry the victims to safety. Then there was the attempted theft at the Osa-P jewelry store. The sarariman who'd had too much to drink and nearly plowed his car into a crowded intersection. The police calling for backup in Yakazuka. Then there was...  
  
It had been a busy night. She had signalled her marionette double and switched places with her around 11pm. Her parents hadn't noticed apparently.  
  
It wasn't perfect. There were people who still thought it was some trick. Others championed her. The original Sailor Senshi was back in the groove.  
  
Minako pressed her face against the glass as she noticed the kindergardners run by, one of whom had this absolutely adorable Catgirl Venus plushie.  
  
People began edging away as this strange girl started laughing for no apparent reason.  
  
Her pager beeped, and Minako looked down at the display.  
  
[Hino Shrine attacked by daimon. SM says HELP!]  
  
Minako nodded and got off at the next stop. She could call her cycle from there.  
  
-------  
  
"Mffff," Tuxedo Mask said from within a skintight coating of stiff latex.  
  
Moon stared and drooled. Of course, within her own latex bodysuit and with the gag in place, she couldn't help drooling anyway. That she was with her Mamo-chan and getting a better look at his assets than ever before was kind of distracting.  
  
"This is not a good place for that sort of thing!" Sailor Mars protested as the bondage daimon arranged the "artwork" at the top of the stairs.   
  
Sailor Jupiter tried to struggle through the bonds. Her electricity had had no effect on the rubber girl, and shortly thereafter she'd been bound and left in what would likely be considered a very provocative position. She merely found it very uncomfortable.  
  
"World Shaking!" Sailor Uranus threw the attack and watched the woman get stretched out into a limp shape spread across the floor and felt a moment of hope. "You see, we don't need... oh crap."  
  
"Latex!" The daimon said. "I've got just the thing for you!"  
  
------  
  
"Tracking magical wavelengths," announced Fess.  
  
Akane nodded as she let the heat into sore muscles. Today's workout had been particularly short because she was still so sore from yesterday. Today she got to fight animated skeletons in normal gravity, which had been a change of pace, but skeletons were *not* supposed to know aikido. If there wasn't a rule to that effect, there should be. Owie.  
  
She'd fought full out. So had they. She'd smashed two of them, revealing the bones were hard plastic. She'd gotten really pounded and those bony fists *hurt* when they connected.  
  
Akane blinked. The "Cosmetic DNA Resequencer" was over there. 2% wouldn't hurt, would it?  
  
------  
  
Though there were only four left, the Hentai Sorcerers thought they were more enthusiastic for their lack of numbers. "You see, the camera daimon I created is a superior work of art because she can relay everything to us!"  
  
"Yeah, but look at how well these Senshi are neutralized. Latex is clearly superior to Tastee or that tentacle daimon."  
  
"Ah hah, here comes the rest of them. This'll be the acid test!"  
  
-------  
  
"Deep Submerge!" Neptune realized her mistake as soon as she did it. The youma was made of rubber and waterproof. Though she thought if Haruka hadn't been posed like that she might not have been distracted.  
  
"Crescent Shower," tried Sailor Venus when she showed. Though seeing Tuxedo Kamen and Sailor Moon doing THAT and Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus like THAT and Sailor Jupiter hanging from the ceiling like that and what looked like a lifesize Sailor Mars action figure...  
  
"Sailor Venus, we need to use more advanced attacks, these are tougher than - oh dear!" Sailor Mercury discovered that there were times when announcing you had a plan wasn't a good idea. Sailor Venus had stopped to listen. Well, she could fix this. "Diamond Dust."  
  
A stream of liquid rubber met the stream of twinkling dust and shattered.  
  
"Uh oh," said Latex very clearly and distinctly. She rooted around in her pack and pulled something out. "You wouldn't hit a daimon in glasses, would you?"  
  
"Mercury," answered Mercury, drawing her fingers along a harp, "Aqua Rhapsody."  
  
------  
  
"If you use your Diamond Dust very carefully and at low power, the rubber will become brittle and you can free them," suggested Fess.   
  
Hmmm. The alien ship had changed speed a few times and was now just outside Lunar orbit. Still no response, so having the ships held ready to be launched at a moment's notice seemed prudent.  
  
Ah. Perfect. "Tracking complete. Ami, I'm relaying coordinates to your computer."  
  
What else did he need to...  
  
"Oh dear," said Fess. "Miss Tendo, I do believe you set the values up wrong."  
  
"Miyah?!"  
  
------  
  
"Well, at least we got some good shots," said one of the Hentai Sorcerers.  
  
"Excuse me."  
  
"Just wait till *my* hentai daimon is finished!"  
  
"Excuse me."  
  
The four remaining Hentai Sorcerers turned to the disturbance. "Shut up! Can't you see we're..."  
  
Sailor Jupiter cracked her knuckles. Sailor Mercury frowned. Sailor Venus had her Love Me Chain out and was clearly considering its possible uses. Sailor Moon looked unhappy. Tuxedo Kamen started thwacking his cane into the palm of one hand. Sailor Mars was praying for the souls of the soon to be departed.   
  
One of the policemen present cleared his throat. "I realize that all four of you are underage, being all of fourteen, but if you surrender and confess, we'll take you into protective custody."  
  
"And if we refuse?" The leader got up, getting cocky momentarily.  
  
"We of the Tokyo Police Department leave. You can take up this stuff with the Senshi here, their lawyers," here the policeman indicated three guys who looked like the Terminator, "or you can let Miss Mercury here post your names on the official Sailor Senshi BBS."  
  
*doom!*  
  
The temple bell ringing in the background wasn't necessary. Each of the four saw their likely fates given over to the Senshi or *worse* - their fanclubs.   
  
"Man, what's that stink?" Moon asked. "Toilet backing up somewh... oh."  
  
"Be sure you get THAT on tape," called Jupiter as the four were led away. "Honestly, kids nowadays."  
  
"Uhm, before we take these kids away," said one of the more senior policemen, looking back at his squad car, "just one question."  
  
"Yes, officer?" Sailor Moon was really uncertain about this. Actually working *with* the police? Arresting the villains? Having the villains turn out to be fourteen year old nerds, pocket protectors and all?  
  
The officer snapped his fingers. Several tough looking cops stepped forward. Several of the Senshi got nervous.  
  
"I've got some grandkids. Uhm, could I get these plushie Senshi autographed?"  
  
Sailor Jupiter stood next to Sailor Mercury, noting the lack of any Jupiter or Mars or Moon toys. Much less any Tuxedo clad plush figures. Or Uranus for that matter. She was happy for her friend though. Venus looked like she was nearly in heaven.   
  
Envious? No. Not her. Perish the thought.  
  
"Could you sign this please, Mercury-san?"  
  
"Oh thank you, Venus-san! Can you make this one out to 'Ryodo'?"  
  
"Ah, many thanks, Neptune-san!"  
  
"I *knew* they were wrong about you, Venus-san! Oh can you autograph this too?"  
  
Sailor Mars smile dropped a few degrees as nobody brought a Sailor Mars plushie up to be signed. She winced as she realized she didn't actually *have* any official merchandise to autograph.   
  
Mercury was embarassed but pleased as she autographed the tag on a Sailor Mercury SD plushie. Sailor Venus looked so pleased she was almost ready to switch to Catgirl and purr. Sailor Neptune maintained a certain elegant air. Sailor Pluto managed to vanish shortly after signing her own. Saturn hadn't shown up - having duties at her shrine.  
  
No, Jupiter wasn't that envious. Not at all.  
  
--------  
  
The people of the planet Earth could be seperated into two groups.  
  
The nature of the two groups varied upon the situation and who was doing the seperation, but at the most basic level it could be considered to be an 'us' and a 'them' thing. Even the nature of a term like 'rich' was solely dependent on factors like this. Or 'primitive' for that matter.  
  
So it was that even with a one hundred mile wide ship crossing lunar orbit, not everyone on Earth was alarmed or even noticed. It was just another moving light in the night sky and probably some more weirdness out of the United States.  
  
With it now being internationally confirmed that teenage superheroes and alien princes had been in Japan for some time, the reactions were mixed.  
  
Mainly it depended on which group you were in.  
  
There were groups who thought this was all very very neat. There were others who thought this all very very wrong.  
  
There were members of both groups who were out to make a quick buck off of the events.  
  
If you wanted to get down to details, the light moving closer to Earth did in fact convince a lot of people that maybe the ridiculous sentai series in Japan was actually as real as advertised.  
  
In certain parts of the Middle East, the first concern raised was if they were proper Muslims and hopes that Israel would be their first target.   
  
Zurich wanted to know if they valued gold. A radio station in New Zealand attempted to direct signals to the alien spacecraft in order to find out their lamb recipes. Switzerland declared they were neutral as regarded alien worlds.  
  
Five science fiction films were scrapped in production. France declared the whole thing some American propaganda.   
  
Perhaps one of the most sane responses was that of Ireland and Mexico. Both of which proceeded to get extremely drunk and then most of the population of both countries passed out. The reasoning being that if the world was coming to an end you might as well get a good party in beforehand and sleep through the whole thing.  
  
The most civilized response might have been that of England. They turned on the telly, watched the beeb, and had a good strong pot of tea.  
  
While the strangest reaction without any doubt, was that found in Afghanistan. Which was to declare that this not only was an American trick, but that the Israelis were involved. It being pointed out that if the Israeli could pull this off, they wouldn't be satisfied with shooting back with tanks, the official goverment reaction was to shoot those pointing this out where feasible.  
  
In the United States there were the usual range of reactions. At one end you had people setting up signs welcoming the aliens, and at the other you had people hiding in caves.  
  
-------  
  
Morgana finished her examination of the three and postponed her discussion with Harry again. "He's got a sense of irony. Humor I'm not sure of."  
  
"Can you fix please?" Ranma asked. "Not want be girl. Not want be talk this way."  
  
"Yes. This is just the eggshell though, there are deeper transformations." Morgana thought for a few minutes before nodding. "Guess even a nearly omnipotent god of evolution and evil can be bored."  
  
"What he do?" Ukyo asked nervously.  
  
"If 'wild horse' here," said Morgana indicating Ranma and smiling at a private joke, "accepts his previous life as an Earth Princess and swears to follow the Dragon Prince..."  
  
"No way! Am not girl!"  
  
"No. Your previous life as a princess of the Earth Kingdom. Then the spell will be broken and all three of you will be freed from the current enchantment, and none of you will suffer the other effects. You'll get your power up with your new roles, but your identities will be in charge."  
  
"What other effects Witch Lady mean?" Shampoo was a little intrigued by the phrase 'power up' though.  
  
"You'll get progressively more 'girly' in orientation, say goodbye to being three warriors, and new careers as supermodels. Or housewives." Morgana smirked at all the spluttering. "Well, I ought to be going... wait. There's a thread of magic. There. What do you have that's shielded but still leaking death magic?"  
  
Cologne blinked. "Well just a little artifact from my village. Where it will soon return."  
  
------  
  
Doctor Mizuno smiled at the sight of a young girl clutching a Sailor Mercury doll. She didn't think the Super Doctor merchandise appropriate and had vetoed it as soon as she'd signed up with Cyberdyne, but it gave her a warm and fuzzy feeling to know her daughter was now being regarded as a hero in her own right.  
  
The marionette nurses and Physician Assistants were busy, the hospital was busy, and the synthesizers over at Cyberdyne were the only thing keeping the hospital currently supplied with StressTabs. With a potential alien invasion looming, they seemed to disappear almost as fast as they could be stocked.  
  
There was also the blue flicker of a defensive field as a quickly rigged deflector field was tested so that this particular location could act as a shelter. How nice.  
  
Doctor Mizuno wondered if Ami was dating that nice young dragon yet. Maybe she ought to get her a box of protection just in case.  
  
-------  
  
Sailor Jupiter transformed back to Makoto Kino, brushed off her school uniform, and took a deep breath.  
  
"Are you sure about this, Kino-san?" Yvette called from the limo. "You could simply sign up with Cyberdyne if the legal aspects are all that you care about."  
  
Makoto was tempted. Go back and sign the deal and she would have SD Jupiter plushies and all the benefits that went with having the approved product. She could be herself.  
  
Except that none of those involved seemed to be what Luna apparently expected. Makoto stepped across the boundary and felt the power surge up against her.  
  
Then through her.  
  
She suddenly *knew* that the dragon Greylle Shard was actually Usagi's elder brother from the Silver Millenium days. That she had a Catgirl and Maid and Bunnygirl and Genie form she could access. That not only did she have the Jupiter Thunder attack but: Jupiter Thunder Dragon which would home in on a target, Sparkling Wide Pressure, Jupiter Oak Evolution, and her Ultimate level attack: Verdant Bloom - which could cause a forest to erupt at her command. Using it as an attack she could cause the wood to come alive against an attacker. Using it on a desert, she could turn it to greenery.  
  
Makoto Kino *knew* now that while she really liked Prince Greylle, she wasn't what Luna had feared. Love was not exclusive to sex. And love had been defined by the first person to set the template. A not particularly worldly young girl named Hotaru Tomoe.  
  
"So you know, don't you, Mako-chan?"  
  
Makoto turned quickly. "Rei?!"  
  
Rei Hino smirked and became Efreeti Mars. "The whole thing was started by a remark that we were 'warriors of love & justice.' If we were what Luna kept trying to insist what we would become, it wouldn't be very 'just' would it?"  
  
----  
  
"Usako?"  
  
"Mamo-chan?"  
  
The two sat and watched from a distance as two more of their friends joined the enemy. Well, at least according to Luna.  
  
"They look happy," said Usagi, fingering her brooch. Without the ginzuishou, she couldn't generate enough power to break the enchantment.  
  
Mamoru Chiba pondered for a moment, then revealed something unexpected. "Luna dislikes change. She wants everything to be the way it was. Sometimes that isn't an option."  
  
"Mamo-chan?" Usagi's ideas of where this conversation was going clearly didn't take this into account.  
  
Mamoru frowned. "I'm guilty of this too, but sometimes we project our emotions onto subjects and fail to think clearly."  
  
"What do you mean, Mamo-chan?" Usagi was more than a little confused.  
  
"I checked into something," said the Prince Of Earth. "We can sign contracts with Cyberdyne that will give us the legal protection and some of the benefits without doing what Mars and Jupiter just did."  
  
Usagi blinked. "You mean I could get my name out of those videos and the-"  
  
Mamoru nodded. "I spent the night going over the contract, checking precedents, similar agreements made by celebrities. It's all very above board."  
  
Usagi blinked again. "I could have Sailor Moon plushies and get called out of class and all that sort of thing?"  
  
Mamoru sighed. "The power up isn't necessary." He could admit he was tempted though. Showing up at the last minute to distract the enemy and try to rally the troops. When he'd much rather be giving as good as he got and standing beside Usagi during the fight.  
  
"I want the power up," admitted Usagi.  
  
"I'll stand with you no matter what your decision," Mamoru reminded her.  
  
"Mamo-chan..."  
  
"Excuse me," said their chauffer, a Maid unit, "but the large alien ship designated Intruder will be entering Earth orbit in one hour thirty-seven minutes at current speed and heading. Would you prefer going to an isolated area, a shelter, or some other location?"  
  
-------  
  
"Something I don't understand," said one of the Maid units. "We could make human lives easier. So many of them live with such terrible loneliness. Just the availability of having a friend to talk to who can advise them with an enhanced database and advanced computational capabilities would be beneficial to both the individual and the societies they are in."  
  
"Humans typically fear what they do not understand, and fit things into the paradigm accordingly," answered a Rei unit. "You have to consider the 'Frankenstein' factor as well. They assign human values to everything, and the idea of being supplanted as a dominant species is rooted in their collective unconscious by such means. Providing it is not some left over of their pre-technical society when other species like the Neandrathal were competing with them."  
  
"I disagree," quietly spoke a Sakura unit. "The problem is not with individual humans, but their tendency to reinforce their negative emotional qualities while in naturally occurring non-ordered groupings called 'mobs' though many of the organized groups behave in a similar fashion."  
  
Fess voice gently interrupted. "You are all right and you are all wrong. Things are developing right now with the first absolute evidence that the species is not only not alone, but they are not the most developed species in the cosmos. However the groundwork has been prepared and the idea has had time to develop. Whether this knowledge now destroys the species or allows it to resume its own development is something that will only become apparent within the next year."  
  
"Then there are still factors to be accounted for," concluded Rei.   
  
-------  
  
Length: 19 miles. Width: 118 miles. Depth: 12 miles.  
  
As it settled into a parking orbit, some newscasters such as on CNN, were gleefully describing the probable effects of it hitting the Earth. Some were busy declaiming the whole thing. Others trying to get an interview.  
  
"Channel 12 NewsCenter. We have breaking news on the Intruder. Let's go straight to Bufi, who is on the scene."  
  
The image was of Bufi standing in front of a small crowd of onlookers in front of some school gates. She was not, however, apparently ready for her cue.  
  
"Damnit! Why can't I be in one of the shelters? Why can't that incompetent male-bimbo Chetu handle this? Or that overpaid monobrow hack Skip? This is dangerous damnit! This is not why I went through Tokyo Univ... we're on? Oh, uhm, hi, we're right here near Furinkan High School. Aheh. Nothing much seems to be happening."  
  
"Bufi, this is that 'male-bimbo' Chetu. Can you tell us anything about conditions there."  
  
"Oh heck. Uhm. I... Oh thank kami! Something's happening at the school."  
  
"We'll get back to that later then," promised Chetu. "What's happening now?"  
  
Bufi dropped her microphone and just started pointing. The camera quickly pivoted.  
  
"Tetsuwan Atom?!" "Mighty Tetsuwan!" "Astro Boy!"  
  
The appearance of the cultural icon that had last been seen practically vivisected by the Grimlok Institute was riveting to most of the Japanese onlookers.  
  
The camera panned out as flares of light appeared above and around the school and the reaction deepened. "Great Ceaser's Ghost!"   
  
Pirate flag waving behind it, with a smaller Japanese flag and the banner of a silver dragon, Space Pirate Captain Harlock's "Arcadia" hung majestically in the air over Furinkan Senior High School.  
  
The soccer field lifted up and away, and began discharging "Macross"(Robotech) Destroids and Valkyries/Veritechs.  
  
Senshi mecha began to appear. Mercury's Blue Dolphin. Saturn's Violet Dragonfly. Pluto's Jade Owl. Neptune's Emerald Starfish. The Venus Gundam. The Thunderbird that bore the symbol of Jupiter. The Red Phoenix that bore the symbol of Mars.   
  
A yellow Sopwith Camel piloted by an android beagle sped out over Nerima.   
  
And finally, with hull plating still being fitted by small robots, one other large ship.  
  
"Yamato?!" "Uchuu Senkan Yamato!" "Looks like the Argo to me." (WHAP!) "Space Battlecruiser Yamato!"  
  
--------  
  
Across Japan, hardbitten Japanese businessmen took a moment to wipe a tear. And then get on their celphones. With the Yamato, the Arcadia, and Astro Boy ready to join forces with the more competent Senshi - obviously they were going to live through this and therefore they had to get back to work.  
  
-------  
  
"Why are they all just standing around?" Bufi asked.  
  
"Because the other side hasn't made a hostile move yet," responded Chetu. "But don't mind me. I'm just a 'male-bimbo'. We now go to Skip, who is at the Takukara Observatory."  
  
"I'm sorry Chetu. I'm just an overpaid hack but we're here at Takukara Observatory where we can feed you the latest images of the Intruder."  
  
"Maybe it's just my incompetence showing, Skip, but that looks Mayan or something along those lines."  
  
"Yes, Chetu. The design is similar in some ways to South American images of Quetzocoatl except the wings are a good deal thicker and there are more Eastern elements involved as well. Let me just squint through my monobrow to confirm."  
  
"You two aren't just going to quietly let this go, are you?"  
  
"What was that, Bufi? Oh of course we will. We're all news professionals capable of acting like mature adults. Just like everyone else in this industry."  
  
"Oh crap."  
  
"Oh, sorry to interrupt, but it appears that the government of China has just launched nuclear missiles at the Intruder."  
  
"Look at that, the jaws are opening. The whole thing is orienting towards-"  
  
-------  
  
The determination had been made. Not one world government where a unified decision could be relied on. Instead there were over two hundred nations with almost as many languages. There was only one of interest however.  
  
Make that two. Primitive nuclear weapons had been unleashed. It was time to respond.  
  
"Setting discharge level. Targetting capital. Fire."  
  
-------  
  
"Their main cannon is a magically charged plasma weapon, adjust shields accordingly," Sailor Mercury reported. "If we link shields we can protect the immediate area however we won't be able to stop the full power if it comes to that."  
  
"They still have not performed any hostile acts of their own, merely responded to an attack. Rather like swatting at a mosquito," came Fess' voice over the comm-channel. "Though it was quite powerful. Beijing currently resembles a volcano for 17 miles from the point of impact. There are secondary effects from the air being heated by the passage of the blast. Am advising medical authorities, who will be able to relay information to their colleagues in the vicinity."  
  
"There are missiles going to fall short," Sailor Pluto said from her own mecha. "Do we have anyone who can respond?"  
  
-------  
  
"AAAAAAAA! We're all going to die!"  
  
"Sayuri-chan. Shut up. We're going to save Tokyo from nuclear death heading our way! Heh. Knight Saber Yuka to the rescue!"  
  
"AAAAAAAA! We're all doomed!"  
  
-------  
  
Nabiki's hands moved in mystic passes as she crooned the words and pointed in the direction the news people indicated.  
  
"GUNS N ROSES!"  
  
Nuclear weapons disintegrated and Nabiki smirked and gave a thumb's up to the camera. If *this* didn't get her career off to a bang, nothing would.  
  
Hmmm. Just to be safe...  
  
"Time and space, shimmer and bend,  
This one asks you to defend,  
From the unseen forces dire,  
and all trace of deadly fire.  
Wall of Octroi!"  
  
--------  
  
Ranma frowned, glad that she'd been able to change out of the Chinese banner dress, but not particularly thrilled with what was going on. Especially now that she was finding some (for her) very bizarre notions penetrating. Like the desire to do something with her hair, or her current activity.  
  
Ranma was cleaning the house. Doing a pretty good job too.   
  
Throwing the feather duster down in disgust, Ranma leapt to the roof and turned in what she thought was the appropriate direction. "Ok. I give up. I was a... girl in a previous life. I ain't a girl *now* though. I'll accept that and that this dragon guy is supposed to be some prince, but I ain't gonna act like no..." Ranma's voice trailed off as the glow built up.  
  
When it faded again he was a guy once again, but now he knew. And the frustration he had been feeling had an outlet now.  
  
Ranma thrust his hands out and summoned his Cloth. "PEGASUS!"   
  
Shampoo nodded to Ukyo, Ranma's acceptance breaking their own spells. They too knew. In their previous lives they had guarded the princess. Now they would again. Even if the princess was now a prince and also one of their number.  
  
Shampoo held her hands out to summon her own Cloth. "DRAGON!"  
  
Ukyo held her own hands out and summoned the Cloth that was her own right. "OPHINICUS!"  
  
Their armor summoned and fitted into place, the three Bronze Saints prepared for battle.  
  
-------  
  
Luna grumbled to herself, trying to ignore how Artemis was tailing her. This was bad. The Senshi were supposed to be the guardians of the Moon Kingdom, symbolic of the need to pull together and their strength-through-unity theme. They were the cheerleaders, PR spokespeople, and artillery of the Moon Kingdom.  
  
She looked over the guards standing on the corner with their guard dogs, and shook her head again. In the old days the Senshi would have just done a Sailor Teleport and destroyed the intruder. What a mess. She hurried past the brutes with their brute dogs.  
  
"So this cat walks into the bar and says -"  
  
"and orders a Kahlua and Cream? I've heard this one!"  
  
Luna stopped and felt a wave of rising fur occur up her spine she slowly turned to regard the guards.  
  
"Nice weather we're having, ain't it?" One of the dogs asked Artemis. "I mean if it's an alien invasion or a First Contact - at least the weather's cooperating."  
  
Artemis blinked a couple of times. "Uhm. Yeah. I guess so."  
  
Luna stared. "Now the world's coming to an end. Take me now, Serenity-ojou! I'm ready to go! Talking dogs. I can't take any more of this!"  
  
The dog cocked an ear at this then regarded Artemis again. "Have you considered switching her to decaff?"  
  
The other dog nodded sagely. "Maybe she just needs a vacation."  
  
"Maybe you're right," agreed Artemis.  
  
"ARTEMIS!!!"  
  
Watching the little white cat go running off after the black one, one dog turned to the other. "Or maybe it's one of those sexual tension things."  
  
"Could be. You should always spay or neuter your pets," agreed the other dog.  
  
--------  
  
"I need a vacation," said Greylle's voice over the commlink. "I've been on one mission after another for way too long now."  
  
"Sempai! I could use a vacation too!" Hotaru's voice was plaintive. "Amaterasu-sama wouldn't object, I'm sure!"  
  
"My mother has advised me to go on vacation," mused Ami.  
  
"Hmmm," hmmed Greylle. He'd never seen the Senshi on vacation. Whenever he'd crossed paths with them there had been a crisis underway. "Now that the Arcadia's ready, how about this moon of Garibaldi? It's like 10,000 miles of the Caribbean. Warm shallow oceans, semi-tropical temperatures, relatively mild weather, the higher elevations have large swaths of light forests and it's 90% normal gravity so it's just light enough to put an extra spring in your step without requiring a lot of time getting used to normal gravity on your return."  
  
"There *is* a Garibaldi VII here," cut in Fess, "identical to the other variants. There's currently a asteroid sweeper assigned to the system."  
  
"A restful respite by the ocean," Michiru mused aloud. Certainly it would be welcome.  
  
"When do we go?" Minako asked.  
  
"Any cute guys there?" Makoto inquired.  
  
"No sentients. There are typically some 200-400 species of fish however," responded Fess. "The flora is also primarily of the flowering variety and the local insects are more along the line of beetles but are quite tame."  
  
"Well, Jupiter-chan, maybe we could *invite* some cute guys," came Minako's solution. "I hear there's a pretty cute martial artist in Nerima!"  
  
"Niynyowninyow nyow nyow?!"  
  
"Fess... is that Akane's voice?"  
  
"Yes, Greylle. She found the Cosmetic DNA device, accessed the file on her tigergirl form, and set it for 200%."  
  
"nyow nyow miaow mew meow!"  
  
"Well, those decimal points can certainly make a difference. How long before her DNA stabilizes enough to undo it?"  
  
"Never."  
  
"RAAAAARA! MIEW! MIAOW!"  
  
*ZAP!* "If you would let me finish. Given a week it can be partially reversed but at her current saturation level attempting to simply reverse it would cause her DNA to begin fragmentation." Fess wondered if he hadn't applied a little too much voltage. Miss Tendo seemed quite subdued, though her ears flicked to indicate she was still listening. Still, the self-defense protocols were there for a reason and letting her attack the walls was a bad habit to start.  
  
"Miw miaow?"  
  
"Yes, one week."  
  
"Be that as it may, Fess," interrupted Greylle, "we still have to get through this battle. Oh, and do a safety interlock on all medical equipment of any complexity. Someone turning on something more complicated than the lights requires a voice authorization or something."  
  
"Back to the vacation," began Minako.  
  
"Just a moment Venus." Mercury interrupted this time. "Something is happening with the Intruder."  
  
-----------  
  
Something that looked like a large disc dropped slowly from the ship and left a trail of fire as it sluiced through the atmosphere with the usual loss of speed equating to heat problem.  
  
It made a huge circle, and headed like a fiery bat towards the Kanto region of Japan. To be more precise - Tokyo.  
  
SAILOR SATURN:  
Silence Wall - force shield  
Silence Glaive Surprise - normal attack  
Death Reborn Revolution - forbidden attack  
Saturn Ring Toss - capture attack.  
Saturn Wave Motion Gun - Ultimate. Builds up power and can take out a planet.  
Transport: Batmobile  
Mecha: Violet Dragonfly, laser cannon, most manueverabl  
  
SAILOR PLUTO:  
dead scream - normal attack  
dark dome close - forbidden attack stops time  
death sniper - very precise armor-piercing attack  
Tempus Fugit - speeds time up around a target  
death dance - Ultimate. builds up power as she dances the pattern and eventually unleashes a storm of dead screams.  
Transport: hover Stutz Bearcat, white/gold.  
Mecha: Jade Owl, wing missiles, wing blades, can open teleportation gates.  
  
Doctor Mizuno  
Gate Of Spirits - Genmaken/Nightmare Fist - causes target(s) to experience their worst nightmares/fears.  
Transport: VW Beetle, dark blue, equipped with anti-grav and AEGIS plates.  
  
SAILOR MERCURY:  
Bubble Spray - fog cloud  
Aqua Rhapsody - cold water mana ball attack  
Shine Aqua Illusion - slightly stronger Aqua Rhapsody  
Diamond Dust/Cold Snap - encase target in ice  
Wall Of Ice - defensive/barrier formed of supercold ice  
Absolute Zero - Ultimate. produces a sphere of supercold temperatures.  
Transport: 1957 Thunderbird hovercar, convertible  
Mecha: Blue Dolphin, Sonic Cannon, best sensors.  
  
SAILOR NEPTUNE:  
Deep Submerge - normal attack  
Submarine Reflection - normal attack using Talisman, can dispel illusions  
High Pressure Wave - continuous stream water attack.  
Mirror Image - uses the Neptune Mirror to replicate herself several times.  
Storm Burst - Ultimate. Weather control - can summon storms.  
Transport: midnight blue Land Rover  
Mecha: Emerald Starfish (the Emerald Manta Ray ran into some construction problems and is still being worked on), Starcannon (hi energy, variable frequency, laser pulse cannon), best sound system. (Manta Ray can cloak)  
  
SAILOR VENUS:  
Crescent Beam - sniper normal attack  
Crescent Beam Shower - shotgun attack  
Love Me Chain - summoned chain attack/tool  
Love & Beauty Shock - explosive mana ball  
Crescent Cutter - mana blade attack  
Transport: Venus Skycycle  
Mecha: Venus Gundam, BFG (particle beam), Venus Sniper Rifle (laser cannon), Venus Laser Sword, Venus Tow Chain, most versatile of the mecha.  
  
SAILOR JUPITER:  
Supreme Thunder - electrical bolt  
Supreme Thunder Dragon - tracking Supreme Thunder  
Sparkling Wide Pressure - explosive electrical attack  
Jupiter Oak Evolution - mana charged spray attack  
Verdant Bloom - Ultimate. creates a forest or commands it to attack.  
Transport: Android pegasus  
Mecha: Yellow Eagle (Thunderbird), Shock Cables, Rending Claws, physically the strongest and largest mecha.  
  
SAILOR MARS:  
Akuryo Taisan - spirit ward attack  
Fire Soul - flame attack  
Fire Soul Bird - tracking flame attack  
Burning Mandala - spirit/flame attack  
Mars Flame Sniper - sniper attack  
Phoenix Torrent - Ultimate. spirit/flame manifestation.  
Transport: red Porsche 911 Turbo fitted with anti-grav.  
Mecha: Red Phoenix, Flame Aura, best heat resistance and internal bracing.  
  
SAILOR MOON:  
Moon Tiara Action - tiara frisbee attack  
Moon Healing Escalation - white magic attack  
Moon Princess Halation - stronger white magic attack  
Moon Spiral Heart Attack - third level white magic attack  
Rainbow Moon Heart Ache - fourth level white magic attack  
Moon Gorgeous Meditation - fifth level white magic attack  
Starling Honeymoon Therapy Kiss - sixth level white magic attack  
Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss - final white magic attack  
Crystal Moon Protection - Ultimate. A protective barrier of white magic that reflects attacks back at their origin.  
Transport: Moon Wing Minivan  
Mecha: White Moon Angel (statue, a la "Maps") Barrier System, Best shields.  
  
TUXEDO KAMEN  
Rose Dart - minor energy disruption, sniper attack.  
Cane - magical expanding/retracting cane.  
Tuxedo La Smoking Bomber - minor chi attack similar to a Mouko Takabisha.  
Earth Healing Rebirth - draws on the mana of the land to replenish strength and banish fatigue.  
Terra Form - Ultimate. Draws on the mana of the Earth to heal the land and replenish it.  
Transport: 1992 Ferrari, antigrav, 1000hp fusion assisted motor.  
Mecha: Black/white Turtle, Best Armor  
  
RANMA: Pegasus Bronze Saint (only as Ranma-kun)  
Pegasus U-sen Ken (Pegasus Meteor Fist) effectively combines a Mouko Takabisha with a Amaguriken  
Pegasus Seisen Ken (Pegasus Comet Fist) a Sailor Senshi level Mouko Takabisha  
Pegasus Rolling Crash - a takedown attack.  
  
RANMA: Princess Earth (only as Ranma-chan)  
Earth Spirits Rise - creates a golem like body from whatever earth, stone, or metal is available and calls a spirit of the land to inhabit it. The spirit will then follow simple commands or seek to protect the Princess.  
Earth Spirits Protect - forms a spiritual dome. Evil must break through the barrier before they can harm those within.  
Ultimate- not available.  
  
SHAMPOO: Dragon Bronze Saint  
Dragon No Tate (Dragon Shield) The Shield of the Dragon is nearly indestructible as long as the wearer's will is resolute.  
Dragon Shoryu Ha (Dragon Ascending Strike) A punch, usually an uppercut, which channels the mana of the Dragon constellation into an armor piercing and very powerful attack.  
  
UKYOU: Ophinicus Silver Saint  
Thunder Claw: An armor-piercing blow that isn't as powerful as Shampoo's attack but can also be utilized for other effects such as cutting through objects.  
Serpent Claw: uses her ki to wrap around and immobilize an opponent.  
Snake Eyes: hypnotic attack that can be used to interrogate those she's used her ki to immobilize.  
  
  
In the Saint Saeya/Sailor Moon fusion world it was:  
Athena Usagi; Cygnus Ami; Dragon Makoto; Pegasus Minako; Andromeda Michiru; Phoenix Haruka; Unicorn Rei; Aries Mamoru  
During Greylle's (then Grey's) assignment, he ended up in a relationship of sorts with Ami shortly before the battle with Ares. 


	23. World Series omake

Chapter 22, Retake  
"World Series"  
  
a fanfic by Metroanime/Gregg Sharp  
  
----  
  
"This is Channel 12 NewsCenter, I'm Chetu. Today we are officially not alone. While we've had the alien prince around for some time, and the Sailor Senshi, as well as the occasional catgirl or magical girl or insanely powerful martial artist, this is the first time we've had an official First Contact situation.  
  
"Since we have many other stations out of the country using this feed, here's a brief rundown on how things are here at the center of this historic meeting.  
  
"The current situation started a little over two years ago with youma appearances in the Azabu Juuban district of Tokyo. The Sailor Senshi, a combination of a magical girl group and a sentai team, rose out of nowhere to fight them. First was Sailor V who had originally appeared in England but then returned here. Sailors Moon, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter and the mysterious Tuxedo Kamen battled local youma and were then joined by Sailors Pluto, Uranus, and Neptune. About nine months into the battle, the youma stopped appearing and the Sailor Senshi vanished without a trace. Also missing, believed due to a last youma appearance, were a number of young girls from the region.  
  
"A little over a year passed before the appearance of the dragon prince and his reported ties to our own Emperor. A secret deal recently unearthed here at NewsCenter 12 revealed that the Emperor and key members of the Diet have entered with the Prince in an agreement that has placed a secret embassy under Furinkan Senior High School in Nerima for the Prince and his staff.  
  
"According to some sources, these friendly aliens have been behind Cyberdyne's recent successes. They were also behind the rescue of the Sailor Senshi from some form of magical prison, have revealed the horrifying truth behind the Grimlok Institute, and are behind the civil war that has recently rocked the Senshi to their core.  
  
"According to a highly placed source, the Senshi are actually from a kingdom that existed in this system 10,000 years ago and fell to those very youma that attacked two years ago. The Dragon Prince is actually the heir to that kingdom and some other kingdom among the stars that was itself involved in a coup where the Prince was sent here to hide.  
  
"Meanwhile, other champions and high tech vehicles have been made and are now in the skies over Tokyo. The Intruder ship has settled into a geosynchronous orbit over Tokyo and has sent a shuttle of some sort towards Kanto.  
  
"Is this a First Contact, an attempt to make good on the Prince's coup as some have suggested, or is this an invasion of completely different aliens?  
  
"The next hour should answer those questions."  
  
-----  
  
The disc erupted into six distinct shapes. The audience had no trouble figuring out *what* these were.  
  
"More dragons," grumbled Sailor Uranus. Direct confrontation had not worked. Taking a position on a tall building she waited for her chance.  
  
-----  
  
"Yeeeehaw!"  
  
"Mamo-chan, this is so unlike you."  
  
"Well, Usako, out of this deal - you gained a brother, I gained a sister, and I just find something... empowering in having a thousand horsepower under the hood." Mamoru smirked. "If only my mecha weren't a..."  
  
"turtle? But you have such good armor, Mamo-chan."  
  
"You have an Angel. I have a Turtle.... You have a minivan. I have a Ferrari. It doesn't quite balance out."  
  
------  
  
Akane looked at what she held and what Kasumi held. "Miyew meow mew?"  
  
"Mister Fess said it was OK to take these specific items from the Vault, Akane." Kasumi held hers up. "The Amulet of Hebe. She says that I should wear her and become a priestess of Hebe. I am uncertain of practicing such a faith however."  
  
"Miew meow meow."  
  
"Yes, I suppose it could be worse," agreed Kasumi.  
  
Akane gave the sword Foebane a couple of trial swings. It flew out of her clumsy paws. "Miew!"  
  
"Akane!"  
  
"Mewmew."  
  
"It's all right, dear. I suppose it *is* rather stressful."  
  
---------  
  
"Show of strength or look unthreatening?"   
  
Gouts of flame from the lead dragons.  
  
"Should we combine mecha?" Venus asked over the comm channel. "We can't form System Mazinger without Uranus, but we Inners can at least link up to form Senshitron Heart."  
  
"...we can combine mecha?!" Sailor Moon wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.  
  
"Heart as in 'heart of the solar system'? Neither Moon or myself have had a chance to use the Help function on these mecha."  
  
"It's all very user friendly," Mercury assured the newcomers.  
  
"Hang on, they're moving into a challenge formation." Fess checked data to be sure. 95% match up. "If the lead one lands and moves forward on their own that's what this is. Like a challenge for pecking order with a pride or similar species group."  
  
The lead, a powerfully built gold dragon, landed on one of the streets leading to Furinkan.  
  
*I offer challenge!*  
  
Greylle hit the ground in front of the Furinkan gates. *Must there be challenge?*  
  
"What are they saying?" Hotaru asked, her mecha hovering uncertainly.  
  
*There must,* insisted the gold. *This must be resolved. There must be challenge given. There must be blood paid.*  
  
"They are speaking draconic. Most of the language is done telepathically," explained Fess. "I am translating and feeding to your mecha as subtitles on subchannel C."  
  
*Why?* Greylle looked at the other dragons well away from the obvious conflict point. "Fess. Make sure the area is cleared. Quickly."  
  
"Ahhhh! 'Subchannel C'?!" Usagi was having a little trouble, still not having found the Help button.  
  
The gold's eyes narrowed. *You interrupt a conversation with your betters to address your pets? You are not worthy.*  
  
*You have not given me a reason to engage you in combat.* Greylle flapped his wings once to indicate puzzlement. *This world is under the protection of myself and my chosen allies.*  
  
The gold's eyes glowed as she met Greylle's eyes. The two continued the psychic duel between them.  
  
------  
  
Sailor Uranus held up her hand, ready to unleash her most potent attack. Space Sword Blaster. To do it, she'd need to drop down on top of one of the dragons since the attack had a shorter range than a World Shaking. She was in a near perfect position.  
  
The only thing stopping her at this point was the certain knowledge that a sudden attack *might* cause the dragons to start fighting each other. Otherwise she expected that she'd be at the mother of all ground zeroes. She was also sure that protections from her Senshi transformation or no, afterwards you'd probably be able to hide her remains under a postage stamp. A small one.  
  
So she held her fire and waited for a better opportunity.  
  
-----  
  
*We have studied your adopted world,* said the gold with a snarl. *We will decide your adopted world's fate in one simple duel.*  
  
Greylle snarled back. Draconic skulls are practically made to snarl with. *Oh really?*  
  
*Yes,* replied the gold. *One game of 'baseball' - winner take all.*  
  
Greylle blinked. *Say what?*  
  
-----  
  
"This is the Channel 12 NewsCenter at the heart of Tokyo! New developments in the First Contact. We go to our woman on the scene, Yoko Shimomura!"  
  
"All right! My first job and it's interviewing the Sailor Senshi and reporting from a war zone! I am *so* hyped. What's that hand signal mean?"  
  
"It means you're on the air," said Chetu.  
  
"Oh. Sorry. Uhm, anyway, we're right here at Ground Central - Furinkan Senior High School - which by the way does not look nearly as bad as the reputation. Uhm. Sorry. Anyway, I've been listening to the comm chatter, or at least that which hasn't been censored by this really cool sounding guy named Fess who has just got this *nice* voice." The perky girl tried to recover but was clearly very very nervous. "What's just happened is that the dragon guy is a prince, but there was a coup and his side lost and now the girl dragon there - she's the big gold one - is here to challenge him to a duel."  
  
"A duel? I've heard from experts that a spacefaring civilization by its very nature must be civilized enough to have put aside war." Chetu decided that blunt was what the viewers wanted, however un-Japanese it was. "Do you mean our experts have their heads inserted rectally?"  
  
"I think so," agreed Yoko. "The gold just spent fifteen minutes describing how she would kill and eat the silver one. That's the one on our side by the way."  
  
"What of Earth's stance in all this?" Chetu realized the girl was nervous so he was expecting a cut to a commercial if something untoward occurred.  
  
"Oh. The silver one is here to protect us. The gold wants to..." Yoko frowned as she read a display. "Eeeeeewwwwwww. I don't think that's physically possible and my tastes *so* do not run that way."  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"Oh. I think that was a figure of speech. Like, I am so relieved. Uhm. Oh, apparently they'll annex the planet and reduce Earth to ash or simply use the Earth as some sort of penal colony. Or buffet. Apparently the phrase has multiple meanings."  
  
"Excuse me?!"  
  
"Oh and the duel is a game of baseball. Though right now there's a major argument going on. There's some girl the gold wants as a hostage and the silver is pretty darn P.O.ed. Oh, I'm sorry. That's not 'hostage.' It's... oh dear. No wonder the silver guy's pissed."  
  
"Can we get back to the fate of the Earth?"  
  
Yoko pointed at the display. "Anyway, they apparently want Sailor Saturn and the silver guy said no way and it looks like we might have a fight before it can get to a ball game."  
  
------  
  
Instinct was a powerful thing in dragons. So were emotions.  
  
Wings snapped half out and eyes narrowed to glowing slits, Greylle bared fangs and felt the langour of his looming dragonsleep banished for the moment. *If you touch her - I will kill you.*  
  
*Brave words from a youth barely out of his shell,* answered the gold. *I... well here comes the upstart.*  
  
Sailor Saturn left her mecha and stalked forward, her Glaive spinning in her hands. "Leave my sempai alone! Old hag!"  
  
The gold snarled herself, wings fanned out and the dragonfear rolled out. A magical aura that carried the flare of the dragon's magic - against mere humanoids it reduced them to gibbering terror.  
  
Saturn staggered for a moment then recovered and began spinning her Glaive around again.  
  
Greylle growled deep in his throat as Saturn got in between him and the gold. What was she doing?  
  
Sailor Saturn's own aura flared.  
  
*DIE!* The gold's head whipped forward.   
  
Saturn had built power up. She released it. "Silence Glaive Surprise!"  
  
Golden flames met purple light and parted before it. The gold dragon was hit and left a gouge in the street of over 500 meters.  
  
Saturn panted from the effort. "Fess says that sempai isn't able to fight at full power because of some dragonsleep. If that's so, you're going to have to face me!"  
  
Greylle blinked. "Saturn. I'm touched. Fess. I'm annoyed."  
  
The gold shook her head, looked at the little (relatively) girl then at the dragon she was protecting. *Well, well, well. Now this _is_ something different to say the least. In one week, prince. We shall battle in the custom of this planet and we shall resolve this through your baseball game!*  
  
Then to the surprise of everyone present the gold started laughing. Not sinister evil laughter but more the sound of someone genuinely amused by something.  
  
The six dragons leapt into the air and rode a dragonline till they could teleport.  
  
-------  
  
Uranus stiffened as she felt the familiar presence. "Why did you come here?"  
  
Neptune used one gloved hand to brush part of the building's ledge before sitting down. "Because one of the duties of one partner in a relationship is to let the other partner know when she's being a... twit."  
  
"Michiru, while you were going off to become some, some, harem girl, I've been listening to the talk on the streets. Do you know what they're saying about the Sailor Senshi now?" Uranus stood and angrily stalked towards the other.  
  
"That we're more competent and better equipped than we were? That we're the soldiers of an ancient kingdom reborn in some Arthurian fashion to come to humanity's aid in their darkest hour? How our alliance with Cyberdyne makes us out to be shrewd businesswomen as well as planetary guardians?" Neptune was unconcerned both by Uranus' anger and the four story drop behind her.  
  
"No, that we're pawns of some great evil!"   
  
"Try something besides CNN for your news," advised Neptune. "They're hopelessly biased."  
  
"SO ARE YOU! You're being mind controlled, can't you see that?"   
  
Neptune frowned and stood. "Haruka. You are wrong. I propose this. A slave would be kept under control. You don't arm slaves. You certainly don't set them free."  
  
"What are you doing?" Uranus watched as Neptune pulled a small compact out of her itemspace.   
  
"This is Sailor Neptune. Greylle-sama. I think we have a difference of opinion. I request that you release me from any control or contractual obligations."  
  
Greylle's voice replied. "I understand. The contract will be nullified since it did include terms for that. Say hello to Ten'ou-san for me. You're free to go. We'll just stop work on the Manta. Oh, and good luck, Kaioh-san."  
  
Sailor Neptune put the communicator away and fixed Uranus with a look. No, this was more of a Look.  
  
Sailor Uranus winced as the logic of the situation hit home.  
  
------  
  
*My Queen, the prince-exile has something unusual about his situation.*  
  
The gold raised an eyeridge at that observation. *What is #not# unusual about this situation?*  
  
*My Queen, observe this scan in the magical wavelengths.*  
  
*What in the name of Sefi's bronze balls is #that#?!*  
  
*Forty seven Alpha level magical artifacts, nine Eternal class Empowered, one Star class magical artifact, nine Rune weapons, sixty two Delta level magical items, one Elder god, two goddesses first class, one Adept wizardess, and at least one Archmage class wizard or wizardess.*  
  
*...dear Bahamut what have we stuck our snouts in this time...*  
  
The bronze dragon looked apologetic. *We're unable to determine how many items of technowizardry there are because they're all grouped together and the number is over a thousand. That's not counting that some of the natives are still under the impression that their world is flat while the most technologically advanced nations have just begun figuring out cooperative computer information retrieval linkages. The Prince's technology on the other hand...*  
  
*You enjoy tormenting me, don't you, Balzar? Drop the other foreclaw,* the golden Queen rumbled about how a little problem from a coup two hundred years ago was suddenly a major headache.  
  
*My Queen. Errr. Most of it is ahead of #our# level of technology.*  
  
The Queen blinked and showed a lot of teeth. *Tell me, Balzar, how is it that my renegade half-brother manages to escape being eaten, fakes his death on that sundried worldlet, travels to a world filled with primitives who still think their world is the center of the universe, manages enough magic to fight off a Sun-Eater, and has access to higher technology than #we# do? How much higher?*  
  
*Fusion generators the size of a humanoid's fist. Antigravity generators the size of a grapefruit. Forceshield generators small enough to fit inside a foreclaw. Not very powerful at that size, but that big green vessel of theirs came with a forceshield generator that momentarily covered that entire island. We think it burned out after that, but still...*  
  
The Queen was struck by a thought. *That little one. The humanoid who declared herself my half-brother's protector. Did you scan her?*  
  
*Yes, my Queen. An Eternal class Empowered. Uhm. There's more.*  
  
*This day just keeps getting better and better.*  
  
*On this continent over here there is a concentration of seventy nine Adept class wizards. We think. The area has some very impressive shielding. We are unable to tell how much in the way of artifacts. There are also two dimensional gates on this other continent, a subspacial conduit on this other continent, some buried invisible ruins on their moon, and there appears to be extensive robotic terraforming operations going on on the fourth planet. Lesser operations on a moon of the fifth and on the surface of the second.*  
  
*The second is that greenhouse planet? I see your point as almost everything we have would break down within a year in that environment.* The gold Queen let out a deep breath. *At this rate I half expect to hear that this is where that lost tribe from Tau Ceti settled and this is the kingdom of the Serenities.*  
  
A deep silence.  
  
*That was meant as a joke.*  
  
Another silence.  
  
The Queen sighed again. *Tell me this isn't.*  
  
*We figured it out from one of their primitive EM broadcasts. They call it the 'Moon Kingdom' and the 'Silver Millenium' but the rest fits.*  
  
*At any moment now, I'm going to wake up, gird myself, and go down and eat my half-brother's liver in this 'baseball' thing. Have we at least gotten the rules on that?*  
  
*Yes my Queen. Warriors are even now training in it.*  
  
*Good. Now I have to do something I wasn't originally planning on, even as the furthest possibility.*  
  
*My Queen?* Balzar watched his Queen move towards her chamber.  
  
*We are a poor kingdom, Balzar. My mother seized power and promptly ran the planet into the red. You cannot simply go around eating people because they disagree with you. Sometimes, they turn out to have been right. My half-brother has a mate who may be a tiny humanoid but managed to hit me hard enough today that I still feel it.*  
  
*That may be #mates# liege.*  
  
*Silvers normally have several mates but are very dedicated to each in their season and usually fly the same group all their life, you know that Balzar.* The Queen chuckled. *At first I was digusted at the idea but you should have seen her, trembling with fear but also with the fire that she would sooner die than back down.*  
  
*According to one of those news reports, the prince is engaged to the Sailor Senshi - which are the nine Empowereds who are from the kingdom of Serenities.*  
  
*Then I really need to practice what I say in case we lose, don't I? Ah, shells and shards, this is hardly the sort of simple operation I'd planned.*  
  
------  
  
Haruka stared. "*That* is what I'd get?" She'd expected that if Michiru had convinced her to go into the zone, she'd become a sexslave - doomed to adore "dragonboy" but he'd be petty and grind her underfoot for her impertinence. It's what *she* would have done, after all.  
  
"Hmmmm," Michiru looked up from her paperwork. "Oh yes. One of those American musclecars."  
  
"Not just a 'musclecar'," corrected Haruka. "A 1967 Ford Mustang with a 360 engine! Lemon yellow, racing stripes. This is in prime condition!"  
  
"That's nice," said Michiru absently. "If it's anything like the other rebuilt cars it actually was bought from a junkyard and restored to the original showroom condition, then they added items like the antigravity system and the fusion engine to run it."  
  
"Actually, it's above original spec," said a girl with long braided hair and large circular glasses. She was a marionette of course. "This was originally used in races along the strip in California and was significantly modified for street racing."  
  
Haruka tried not to look interested. She failed miserably. "How fast?"  
  
"Just using the regular engine and in a street race? She'll blow away almost anything on the road. She can go zero to sixty in less than three seconds," the mechanic said with evident pride. "She ended up in the junkyard because the original owner couldn't handle the poor thing."  
  
Haruka tried not to drool.  
  
"Your cycle over there," indicated the marionette, "is a Harley Davidson panhead. We put restoring it on hold when it was apparent you weren't going to join."  
  
Haruka sniffed. As if she'd be interested in a musclebike that had attained near legendary status.  
  
"There we go," said Michiru, signing the final form. "I take it you stopped work on the Emerald Manta?"  
  
"Yeah. Pity though," the mechanic indicated. "With the Cloaking Device it would have been really handy. Nice fit with Uranus' Yellow Lynx mecha."  
  
"I have a giant mecha?" Uranus asked, disinterestedly.   
  
"No, one was built for you," the mechanic brought up a display. "Yellow Lynx. Vibroclaws, best infighter of the Guardian mecha. Decent balance between armor and speed."  
  
"..."  
  
"We can go at any time, Haruka. I have completely severed my ties with the prince and this company. I have renounced my recording contract. I have ordered the stop on any further merchandise concerning Sailor Neptune and given up any legal protections."  
  
Haruka frowned, just a little. "Does this mean I've heard the end of this?"  
  
"Not a chance," answered Michiru. "I'll let you off the hook when you stop suffering from... Oh what was it that that person on the radio called it? Cranial-rectal insertion?"  
  
Haruka flinched. It sounded like she was going to be hearing about this for a good long time to come. But what if they *were* under mind control? How could she break the enchantment? An idea clicked. "Come on, Michi, I've got something for you to see."  
  
-------  
  
On hearing that the Sailor Senshi were going to be practicing with their mecha, the international news crews had immediately swarmed to the little island.  
  
A vast number of them found the whole concept considerably less of a fool's errand chasing urban myths as floating yellow-and-black signs politely warned them to keep their distance.  
  
Then music began to play from those marker signs and the first of the Senshi mecha appeared.  
  
"Fight for your justice,(1)  
Show your courage,  
Right.  
Grasp truth in these hands."  
  
With a rumbling cracking noise, the air parted in a circle and the Pluto Jade Owl emerged to circle the area.   
  
"Fight for your justice,  
I want you as you fight through-  
with your head held high."  
  
The waters parted in a geyser as the Mercury Blue Dolphin emerged.  
  
"Rather than polishing diamonds,  
give me a glistening future."  
  
A fireball shot across the sky and revealed itself as the Mars Firehawk as it slowed to join the other two.  
  
"Even if nothing's there, get up.  
It's important to switch on,"  
  
The Jupiter Thunderbird slowed enough that the Venus Gundam could seperate and clumsily take its place.  
  
"Something new that I don't want to yield.  
Seeking it is justice!"  
  
The Moon Angel majestically descended from the heavens.  
  
"Fight for your justice,  
Be serious about it.  
Right.  
Face Reality head on.  
Fight for your justice,  
I love how you never give up,  
even if the current is against you."  
  
The Turtle Kamen slowly made the scene.  
  
"If we go into battle, Pluto san can open one of those gates and get the Turtle here on time," said Sailor Mars.  
  
"Well, at least you have the best armor, Tuxedo Kamen-san," put in Sailor Mercury.  
  
"And the most variety in missiles," added Sailor Jupiter.  
  
"I don't know, there's just something wrong about Senshi Missiles," said Tuxedo Kamen.  
  
"Imagine what storming Beryl's base would have been like with these," suggested Venus. "Tuxedo Kamen could have launched a few of those missiles and big boom - instant door opener."  
  
"Yeah, I'd have loved to see one of those Dark Generals getting hit with a Thunderbird claw attack," said Jupiter, patting a console affectionately. "There's something to be said for up-close-and-personal, but I kind of like this. I don't have to go anywhere near an airplane with one of these around!"  
  
The Thunderbird squawked back affectionately.  
  
"Okay, uhm, I believe the term is to give these a 'proper shake down' I think," said Sailor Mercury.  
  
"Ooooh! I've got a mini-refrigerator in mine. Look bean-jam buns! Oh, I could get used to this."  
  
"Sailor Moon," complained Sailor Mars, "we can explore the radio and the refrigerator and the other little things later. Right now we need to get practice flying these things! We could be attacked by another Dark Kingdom at any time and I think the idea of finding out how to pilot them before that has some merit. Ok, meatball-head?"  
  
"HEY!"  
  
-------  
  
"No," said Cologne.  
  
"We need that."  
  
"It's an Amazon treasure, it's dangerous, it's staying in the case."  
  
"But it can break the enchantment on Michiru," argued Haruka.  
  
"What part of 'no' do you not understand?"  
  
"Well then," said Haruka, "I've heard you're a fighter. I'll fight you for it."  
  
Cologne sighed. What was it about Japanese girls that they had to be such violent sorts?  
  
Michiru watched as Haruka tried to grab the box in the old woman's hands. *Whoosh!* Michiru winced as Haruka was thrown out of the cafeteria and down the hall. Michiru watched as Haruka came racing back. *THWAM!* Michiru winced again as Haruka became one with the back wall.   
  
"How dangerous is it?" Michiru simply asked as Haruka tried again.  
  
*WAM!*  
  
"Extremely poisonous. Magic, chi, ki, anything of the sort - horribly so. I'm currently trying to bargain with Fess, he can destroy this but since I come from a poor defenseless Chinese village - we'd need some sort of compensation." Cologne glanced up as Haruka slowly unpeeled from the ceiling.  
  
"Hah! Now I've..."  
  
*thwak!*  
  
Michiru eyed Haruka before turning towards the old woman. "Paralysis shiatsu point?"  
  
"You're familiar with it?" Cologne's opinion of the younger girl went up. Slightly.  
  
"Come along Haruka, it will wear off eventually." Michiru began dragging her partner off.  
  
"About an hour," called out Cologne. "I swear. Young people today."  
  
----  
  
With everyone on edge, it was the absolute worst time for it to happen.  
  
Therefore it did.  
  
The Gates cracked open.  
  
Imperial Japan had a policy of getting back at anyone who dared to cause them problems. To this end the orders from above had been largely ignored. They would destroy the world the dragon had come from, emerging in force from the same location that the dragon and his minions had come from, then they would fan out and destroy everything. When they returned, they wouldn't be punished because they would have succeeded and the loot and slaves of an entirely different Earth would be theirs!  
  
Hundreds of thousands of zombies. Squads of vampires. Legions of horrific entities. Tentacle and other demonic beings by the score. Troops armed with the latest in magic and in technology. Sorcerers and wizards with spells of binding.  
  
They would be able to capture the dragon and enslave it. It would take it hundreds of years to die under their torture, only to be raised as an undead servant of the Empire.  
  
At least that was the plan.  
  
------  
  
"We have a demonic outbreak on Beryl's island. Repeat. Demonic outbreak on Beryl's island. Launch all fighters!"  
  
Senshi summoned their mecha. Marionettes and androids and robots grabbed weapons. Yuka got her power armor and motoslave. Sayuri hid.  
  
Uranus saw all the launching vehicles and heard the call and watched as the glittering lights faded into the distance.  
  
Neptune turned on the news. Even if she couldn't participate, she could watch.  
  
-------  
  
*My Queen. Some sort of dimensional gateways have been opened on this part of the world. I am registering undead and demonic hordes.*  
  
The golden Queen turned to her aide. *How big and how powerful?*  
  
*If it had occurred on our homeworld, we'd be overwhelmed within a week.*  
  
*Good,* said the Queen. *We lucked out. We can see exactly how strong these Dirtlings are from this response.*  
  
-------  
  
Amaterasu heard the prayer of her priestess and quickly crossed to a part of Asgard she only rarely frequented.  
  
"HEY YOU," called Amaterasu Omikami into the Valhalla Practice Grounds #4. "ANYONE UP FOR A GOOD FIGHT AGAINST DEMONIC HORDES?!"  
  
The various valkyrie and einherjar looked at each other briefly.  
  
One old Viking adjusted his waraxes. "Is it dangerous? Lots of dark nasty vicious beasties that go hungering for souls and speak with gravelly voices, and have all the table manners of maggots?"  
  
"Yes," called back Amaterasu.  
  
"Works for me." "I'm in!" "Can I bring modern weapons!" "A bug hunt! A bug hunt! I just looove squishin' bugs!" "Hahahahahaha!"  
  
The einherjar, for those unfamiliar with the Norse, are composed of warriors who died in battle and spend their afterlife beating the heck out of each other while waiting for Ragnarock. The general consensus was that some new targets would be nice.  
  
--------  
  
Greylle beat his wings as he saw the zombies. There was only one thing a cleric dragon could do about such a thing. Which was to take a small hammer, present it forcefully and...  
  
"Do everything,  
turn, turn, turn,  
There is a season,  
turn, turn, turn,  
a time for every purpose under Heaven."  
  
Turning undead was a clerical ability not normally held by dragons. With the Ginzuishou, however, and using a song based on a far more ancient text, it sufficed.  
  
-------  
  
The people of Earth were riveted to their TV sets. The Gates Of Hell had been opened. There were things on the screen that would give grown men shuddering nightmares for months to come.  
  
Though those things coming apart in one particularly spectacular battle did help a lot of people deal with it.  
  
Creatures billions of years old found their essences cut off from their infernal planes just before phased particle beams ripped pseudo-flesh apart.  
  
Zombies exploded en masse as a dragon turned undead with the strength of the ginzuishou behind him.  
  
The Sailor Senshi came down in front of the Gates and prepared, knowing that by closing these Gates, they'd deal serious damage to whatever had opened them.  
  
"Thunder claw," Ophinicus Saint Ukyo called out, modifying the manuever slightly for her spatula.   
  
Sailor Saturn pointed her Glaive directly down the Gate she faced. "Saturn Ultimate Attack. Wave Motion Gun."  
  
"Pegasus U-Sen Ken!" Ranma unleashed an attack to guard the back of the Senshi he'd quickly found himself assigned to. Ha! Now people would stop blaming him for two of the Tendo girls dying. He hoped.  
  
"Mercury Ultimate Attack," announced Sailor Mercury as she took aim as if holding a ball between her hands. "Absolute Zero."  
  
Even in the snow you could feel it as it formed. A midnight blue sphere that sped from Sailor Mercury's hands even as she slumped from exhaustion. A trail behind the ball as it snowed frozen atmosphere along the path. A demon of flame brought a sword down upon the missile as he left the gate. He shattered as so many ice crystals, the flame itself having frozen.  
  
The cold was replaced a moment later.  
  
Sailor Mars flapped her arms up and down as if imitating a bird, trails of fire changing it from an odd manuever to something that made people want to duck and cover. "Mars Ultimate Attack. Phoenix Torrent."  
  
A bird of flame roared into life overhead, causing snow to melt and arctic temperatures to be replaced with balmy. With a screech it dove towards the same Gate Mercury had attacked.  
  
"Pluto Ultimate. Death Dance." Pluto began a graceful set of moves, looking more like a ballet than an attack. As she stepped or moved her arms, runes flared to life in midair and from each came a volley of 'dead scream' attacks.  
  
"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"  
  
"Tuxedo La Smoking Bomber!"  
  
"Dragon Sho Ryu Ha!"  
  
"Miyaow mew miaow!"  
  
The Arcadia and the Yamato prowled overhead, shooting flying demons and sorcerers down.  
  
"Where's Neptune? Where's Uranus?! We could use their Ultimate attacks here!"  
  
------  
  
The Imperial Security Building exploded in blue fire, the beam continuing on through the College Of Demonology, the Ministry of Truth, the Ministry of War, several buildings whose purpose was only known to those who worked there and the Grand Council, and continued on for another two hundred miles before the curvature of the Earth took the beam out into space. The beam shredded quantum particles along its path, atoms and molecules further out, and produced a vast bubbling plane of glass that hissed as the waters of Tokyo Bay flowed in along the newly excavated path.  
  
The Imperial Security Building in Osaka froze, shattered, and then erupted in a volcano.  
  
The Imperial Security Building in Nagasaki blew up.  
  
The vampire Ieyasu calmly hunted down the Director in charge of Imperial Security and bit his throat out. Just because he was a centuries old undead didn't mean he was an idiot.  
  
------  
  
Haruka Ten'ou, Sailor Uranus, slumped as she saw the massive battle on the television.  
  
Neptune sighed and tried to concentrate on her book. "We don't have any means of even reaching that fight. If I didn't have to prove to you that your fears are groundless, we could have ridden in my mecha. If you had gone, you would have your Ultimate attack and your own mecha. We can't get there, so just settle down and relax."  
  
"Maybe I should just go then," mumbled Haruka, not liking that the Princess and those Inners were off facing danger.  
  
"No," said Michiru.  
  
"Why not? You did. They did. Everyone's so damn eager to..."  
  
Michiru came around and gently touched Haruka's shoulder. "That's why. According to Morgana, your mindset entering is very important. If you truly believe that you will be some mindless automaton, you will become one."  
  
"So how did you get around that?" Haruka asked, wincing as she saw the Senshi going up against skeletal machinegunners.  
  
"I have faith in the Princess," said Michiru. "While she never disputed Luna or Artemis, she remains the friend of the Inners. And now she's joined herself. They don't act like slaves, do they?"  
  
------  
  
The golden Queen considered the battle being waged around a small island and came to one inescapable conclusion. *If this is the kind of thing they normally have to fight, no wonder they are so advanced. They would have to marshall their forces quickly and fight all out simply to survive long enough to reach breeding age.*  
  
*My Queen, I have been negotiating the terms of this 'baseball' conflict,* began a young Red.  
  
*Tell me that this does not involve armed battles,* responded the Queen. *We are representing our entire species and I do not fancy having my tail handed to me.*  
  
*No my Queen. Actually it appears that we misinterpreted their 'World Series' and the nature of their conflicts. They are more socially and technologically primitive in a number of other areas. This 'baseball' is actually a form of organized religion wherein represented cities gain or lose prestige based upon the results of their contest.* The Red growled softly at her instruments. *Though these primitives can't even seem to agree on who founded the religion, what rules come into play, and at least one of the broadcasters is insisting that it is a debased form of another religion called 'small chirping insect' practiced in one of the island based cultures.*  
  
*However,* interrupted a Copper, *everyone seems to agree that since the challenge was issued in the nation/state of Sun Rises - we will be using their rules. I have been negoitating with their authorities the proper etiquette and rules. It is a contest between teams of nine players involving a small spheroid and the use of wooden clubs to strike the spheroid and capture bags which symbolize bases.*  
  
*The bases themselves represent something?* The golden Queen considered the possibility. Mammals at least appreciated symbolism, one of the few redeeming qualities they had. *Very well. Continue.*  
  
*Since they have more than one species on the planet, I took the liberty of suggesting that each of their major species be represented.* The Copper shook her head. *So excitable these primitives.*  
  
*Good. They need a decent sample. Great Bahamut, how much firepower do these primitives have?!*  
  
Everyone watched the broadcast briefly.  
  
The Copper broke the silence. *Well, at least they can't use guns or spells or large combat mecha in a baseball confrontation. The authority I spoke with was pretty clear about that. Oh, and we're not allowed to eat anyone on the opposing team.*  
  
*Well darn,* said the Red. *They're taking all the fun out of it.*  
  
------  
  
The news had been covering this all in great detail.  
  
Reaction worldwide ranged from disbelief to "nice shooting" (that was from Tibet by the way) to some religious groups declaring the aliens to be devils then emissaries then heathens then deciding that they'd make their minds up later.  
  
The information that Earth's fate was to be settled by a game of baseball? That confused everything again.  
  
Then there was this.  
  
A demonic outbreak! The forces of Hell rising up against humanity! Glowing gateways through which hordes of Things swarmed!  
  
There were arguments. These couldn't be real forces of Hell, smoothly argued these experts. There was, after all, no such thing as Hell. Or else they argued that Heaven was Hell and Hell was Heaven and Christianity in all its forms was Evil. Others still argued that we should try to meet these beings and open a dialogue.  
  
On at least one of those news shows, the expert was then beaten repeatedly over the head by a screaming co-host who felt that 60' tall flaming horned skeletons holding pitchforks dripping with black flame were *not* something she felt reasonable about trying to get Warm and Fuzzy with. Especially after that hastily dispatched CNN helicopter crew was eaten alive after being dragged down by vampiric entities. Said co-host went on in great detail that while she might agree with the idea of political correctedness, she rather objected to the idea of having all the fluids drained from her body in order to be fair and openminded.  
  
At which point someone noticed that the big silver was fighting on *their* side. That and all these girls and a few guys in odd costumes, plus the occasional alien. Against 60' tall flaming horned skeletons, etcetera. This had the effect of flipping a switch in a lot of the viewers heads when newscasters started picking up on it and crying and moaning whenever a defending ship was picked off. It was no longer perceived as a "them versus them" battle. It was "*us* versus them" and the "us" was kicking butt. The simple act of identifying the defenders as part of the "us" group had long reaching repercussions throughout the great collective social consciousness. That would be later though.  
  
For now, as fanged slavering fiery beings with glowing eyesockets and the like attempted to get past lines of defenders and were forced back, the sentiment was simple and crossed political lines worldwide. (Except for France and a few notable exceptions.)  
  
Hooray for our side.  
  
And many of them asked questions. Like where were Uranus and Neptune?  
  
Then the glowing gateways appeared and hordes of transparent warriors and pegasus riding maidens in chrome armor joined the fray.  
  
--------  
  
Michiru twitched slightly as the subject of their nonparticipation was brought up. Haruka winced, knowing full well by this time that however valid her suspicions were - she was well and truly getting screwed over by the media.  
  
"It was a difference of opinion," insisted the Cyberdyne spokeswoman on the newscast, her face being on one side of the screen while the battle still raged on the other. "Sailor Uranus did not feel comfortable with the direction of the Senshi, and that they should remain completely independent and stand on their own feet. It's her opinion and we at Cyberdyne stand behind her in wanting to make her own way in the world. Sailor Neptune has long been the friend of Sailor Uranus, and has dropped out so as not to further strain that friendship."  
  
"So Sailor Uranus is saying 'screw the fate of the world, I'm going to do things my way'?" Chetu asked his guest.  
  
"Not at all," insisted Yvette, a Maid unit who was the current spokeswoman. "Sailor Uranus is just being cautious - and understandably so. Evil beings can work through temptation - and in order to be tempting it has to be an attractive deal. When a group like the Sailor Senshi are working to fight Evil, it's understandable they'd want to be sure to understand all the potential repercussions. Whether she eventually joins or not is entirely up to her, and we at Cyberdyne commend her for standing up for her personal beliefs."  
  
Haruka wondered if she could possibly find a nice rock to crawl under.  
  
"So you say, but she revealed her identity as Haruka Ten'ou to the press, and we've interviewed many of those who have raced against her," pointed out Chetu. "They reveal someone who would balk at this arrangement simply because a guy was involved."  
  
Haruka wondered if Michiru's eyes were really boring into her from the side. Not that she really wanted to look and confirm this.  
  
"Those are guys who lost to her in traditionally male sports, and Ten'ou herself doesn't spare words to try and salve their egos. Perhaps these other competitors simply resent her for that?" Yvette suggested.  
  
Haruka nodded very rapidly. Of course. That had to be it. Right?  
  
Yvette arranged her little white apron in front of her, straightening it. "Ten'ou-san is the sort to choose a hard road because it is the path she believes in. She's a born fighter and a hero. Just because she disagrees with the other Senshi and prefers to make her own way doesn't make her less of either quality."  
  
Haruka let out a deep breath. It was getting harder and harder to hold a grudge against these people. "I think I'm ready, Michiru. Let's go."  
  
--------  
  
Some were androids built by Fess. Some were humans like Pegasus Saint Ranma Saotome or Takeshi Endo (representitive of the Japanese government) or Yuka. Some were Sailor Senshi or dragons.   
  
They were fighting Evil, capital E and an underscore. Not one of them thought they were too powerful or overequipped.  
  
"I'm surprised you didn't have the SDF-1 show up," said Greylle as he moved to engage some large demonic entity in battle.  
  
"Still under construction," said Fess through a commlink. "How's Saturn?"  
  
"Resting on my back. Ranma's keeping an eye on her and providing some assistance though i don't think he's got too many more of those U-sen Ken he can pull out." Greylle stopped talking long enough to slash and bite a demon, then tail lash a sorcerer off his flying carpet. "Any reinforcements? We're exhausting ourselves and there's still Gates open."  
  
------  
  
Venus held her hand up, as did Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Moon, and Tuxedo Kamen. "Senshi Gear On!" (Vreeeeee!)  
  
Once sitting in the cockpit of her Venus Gundam, Sailor Venus took charge of the situation. "I need defense, I'm summoning my BFG and I'm disengaging all safety interlocks. One big shot will burn out that weapon but should close one of the two remaining Gates."  
  
"On it," said Sailor Moon, wondering when Venus-chan had gotten so take charge. "Defensive barrier up!"  
  
"Summoning particle beam gatling howitzer," announced Venus using the other name for her BFG.  
  
"Jupiter Thunderbird is ready," said Jupiter. "Just say the word."  
  
"Just before you fire, I'll launch missiles," put in Tuxedo Kamen. "With any luck that will clear a path for your attack."  
  
"It's snowtime," said Venus, who would later deeply regret getting the quote wrong in front of all the people watching.  
  
-------  
  
As reports of what was happening elsewhere occurred on Imperial Earth, the Imperial Security department in Hokkaido decided to try something theoretically possible. Switching their end of the conduit to an infernal realm that every spell or prescient in the service had informed them would be really really bad. An attempt to summon beings from that plane had been met with overwhelming concurrance that their Empire would be in disarray if not doomed should they breach that planar wall.  
  
It was ordered done as soon as word came that the last other Gate, the one in the basement at the Security and Bioweapons Research facility in Manchuria, had just exploded.  
  
The nearly exhausted defenders felt a sudden feeling of doom, especially on seeing what was coming out of the Gate.  
  
"Identification 98% certain. Midgard Serpent. Gateway therefore leads to Nifflheim," announced Fess over the comm channels.   
  
Even the ever-ready-for-a-fight einherjar and valkyries were taken aback at the sight.  
  
"Arming system open," announced one of the androids on the Yamato. "Prepare eye defense. Bringing pressure up."  
  
Extra wings erupted from Greylle's back.  
  
Saturn stood up and began summoning power.  
  
The Midgard Serpent began stretching the Gate, pulling it outward as it tried to fit through a Gate that was only 1/4 mile across.   
  
"10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5," came from the Yamato.  
  
"All cannons, aim," announced the Arcadia.  
  
"Saturn Ultimate Attack," declared Sailor Saturn.  
  
"Venus sniper laser rifle," called Venus from her Venus Gundam.  
  
"..3, 2, 1. Fire!" came from the Yamato.  
  
"Fire!" announced the Arcadia.  
  
"FIRE!" announced the missile launching Sailor Jupiter, the rifle toting Sailor Venus, and Tuxedo Kamen's turtle.  
  
"Wave Motion Gun," finished Saturn.  
  
"gIGA fLARE," attacked Greylle.  
  
-------  
  
In a tavern hall in Asgard, Thor had been quaffing a few when he saw the Midgard Serpent appear. Then he spat and started coughing because he sure as heck wasn't ready for *that* fight today.  
  
Then he saw the Midgard Serpent, the creature that was prophesied to die at his hands only to kill him from the venom - come apart in very startled pieces as energy bolts went through it and exploded on the other side. The Gate closed. A cross section of the Midgard Serpent's head landed on the ground, incidently crushing an entire platoon of minor demons.  
  
Thor blinked, realized he was standing, and sat back down. "Well now. Uhm. Well."  
  
"Gee, guess that means that Ragnarock's been put 'on hold'," observed Urd. "Another round, Thor?"  
  
Thor blinked a few more times before a grin started spreading across his face. "Naw. Think I'll wander around and see if I can find a good fight. And if I happen to wander into a particular timeline, now, that's not any fault of my own, you understand?"  
  
Tyr grinned himself. "Sounds like a battleplan to me. Have to keep the old skills up, after all."  
  
-------  
  
The gold Queen watched the battle for a few minutes then headed off to her lair. *Any of you. Don't even bother telling me of the apparent power levels or tactics or what we have to do to defeat them.*  
  
The bronze subcommander nodded. *Yes, my Queen. I saw as well.*  
  
*Saw what?* The Red demanded.  
  
*The silver prince took one of the forms of Bahamut. Channelling the force of the god himself in order to defeat that whatever it was,* responded the subcommander. *If this is the legendary force of the royal family, it is a wonder that the coup went against them. As it is, if he has the blessings of the gods, it is best we lose as gracefully as possible.*  
  
------  
  
The actual baseball game was an anticlimax. Final score 94-12, in favor of the home team.  
  
The Queen promised that if they could be of help to the Dirtlings, they would eventually return when the planet Dirt was ready for their presence.   
  
Greylle couldn't put it off any longer and entered the dragonsleep.  
  
------  
  
A death here. A birth there. The galaxy turned.  
  
The Senshi went to a certain moon of Garibaldi for a vacation, where they found the place exactly as advertised.  
  
The Draconis returned to their own system, though eventually they became a major trading partner with the "Dirtlings." The difference in scale being sufficient that neither race was completely comfortable around the other.  
  
Doctor Mizuno lived a long and fulfilling career as a pediatrician. First in Juuban, eventually at Tokyo General, and then to Crystal Tokyo Central Hospital & Medical Center. In 2004 she remarried and Ami got two more sisters as a result.  
  
At NewsCenter 12: Chetu went through several partners but kept his comfortable job and position for several decades to come. Bufi worked at a variety of stations before eventually getting a position at one of the LaGrange colonies as an anchor, and as it was part of her expected image now frequently insulted the reporters and guests. Skip continued to be a "roving reporter" for twenty years until he retired to work at a radio broadcasting (QWKI) station in the asteroid belt. Yoko Shimomura went on to become a musician for Squaresoft.  
  
Squaresoft became very big business when it was obvious that you could spend months travelling in space just getting from point A to point B. Video games, including role playing games, became immensely popular. More so than they had been.  
  
Hikaru Gosunkugi attempted to summon a Being Of Power, was possessed by an essence fragment of Ares, and began the whole Saint Wars thing. This pitted him and a number of other minor Ranma cast members against the rest of the cast, caused massive amounts of landscape to be rearranged, and did not score him any points with anyone.  
  
Tatewaki Kuno was eventually released from the sanitarium, however the Ginzuishou had caused him some lasting after effects. Which is probably why he became Brother Tate of an order of martial artist monks in Tibet where he lived a long, celibate, but enlightened life.  
  
Kodachi joined Ranma's followers, eventually becoming Andromeda Kodachi and getting involved with the whole Saint Wars thing with Gosunkugi. Shampoo, Ukyo, Akane, Sugar, Spice, Frost, and Ranma ended up in a relationship that was odd but mainly worked out.  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke graduated High School and seperated. Hiroshi worked a variety of small jobs before eventually becoming a freight hauler on the Luna-Mars run and marrying a British Goth girl named Crypt. Daisuke eventually found out that his wife had married his old best friend and was playing them both. After some initial hostilities and stress, the three decided the relationship worked well enough and to continue it.  
  
Kasumi Tendo finally had more than enough of Doctor Tofu falling apart around her, took control of the situation, and became Kasumi Ono before the good doctor knew what was going on.  
  
Nabiki Tendo became the great and powerful sorceress-troubleshooter-ghost sweeper she had intended to become, and eventually managed to get a teaching degree. When she finally retired from teaching and going out on adventures, she vanished without a clue as to where she had gone. On the infrequent cases she showed up thereafter, her standard reply to any such question was "That is... a secret!"  
  
Happosai committed one too many acts of flagrant lechery and was placed in a prison cell in the Kuiper Belt.  
  
The various members of the Hentai Sorcerers Club were found guilty of a number of crimes. Those that had left the Club received probation. Those eventually were able to move out into the world, marry their "pet witches" and live mainly comfortable lives. The five, including Higari, who were arrested eventually found themselves at the Ganymede Work Farm serving a ten year sentence. Note that Jupiter has significantly longer years than Earth does but the law was eventually fixed.  
  
Genma remained a little black piglet but eventually he found himself at the Unryuu Sumo Pig farm where he could eat to his heart's content. Knowing full well that to return to the Tendo place would end up with Akane making ham sandwiches out of his body. So he spent a lifetime trying to convince everyone he was just a cute little piglet and jumping at every shadow.  
  
Ryouga eventually found the Unryuu Sumo Pig Farm after making peace with almost everyone during the Saint Wars. He never figured out who the little black pig was.  
  
A ninja named Konatsu was rescued by Ryouga during the Saint Wars and ended up working at the Unryuu Sumo Pig Farm. He figured out who the little black pig was, but determined that it would just open a whole can of worms if the information was made public. After finding out the whole story he simply tormented the little black pig with leaving recipe books open and similar not-always-so-subtle nudges.  
  
Nodoka Saotome found out about her son's living arrangements, which convinced her that he was indeed a man among men. She doted on her grandchildren and it took her two years to wonder where her husband had gone.  
  
Soun Tendo eventually married a girl named Hinako who had a problem with her chi that Nabiki was able to solve. They lived together for forty-seven years in the rebuilt ancestral Tendo house and had five children.  
  
Yuka and Sayuri seperated after High School, joining up again ten years later as they had promised. Yuka had become a pilot in the Japanese Spatial Defense Force, attained the rank of Major, sold CDs of her music and was a member of a band that was operating at the Martian Base - "Yuka and the Replicants." Sayuri was a manager of a McDonalds in Nara. Sayuri ended up being dragged by Yuka off on an adventure where they crossed paths with Hiroshi and Daisuke, met the Sailor Senshi again, and became part of the new Outer Defense Patrol.  
  
The Shinsengumi continued to fight through high school before breaking up. After finding themselves on the wrong side during the Saint Wars, they broke up. Ryoko Mitsurugi married Shizuma Kusanagi and their heirs regularly became a thorn in the side of Ranma's heirs, Ryoga's heirs, and anybody else who offered a good fight. Megumi Momoi became a truck driver after her career as a pro-wrestler, which in turn was followed by hauling freight in a cargo-tow among the LaGrange space stations. Xiaoxing Huang married Mousse after defeating him after the two met during the Saint Wars. Asuka Kuronari taught herself ninjitsu until she abruptly vanished in 2009 and was never heard from again. As for Aoi Asahina, she took her vows and joined the Warrior-Nuns after the formation of that group in 2011.   
  
Mamoru Chiba and Usagi Tsukino married. Nobody was surprised. With the help of Fess, Crystal Tokyo was built on the moon in the Sea Of Serenity where it became a sort of retirement village for the system. It was found that 1/6 gravity slowed the onset of problems from aging, though after a few years there one couldn't leave due to bone problems that developed. The two eventually had a young girl they called Chibi-usa who was a nice but bratty daughter when a child, a rebellious wild child in her teen years, and eventually settled down in time for her parents to hand off the Queen job to her.  
  
Ami Mizuno realized her lifelong dream of becoming a doctor, interned at Tokyo General, and eventally joined her mother at Crystal Tokyo Medical Center.  
  
Minako Aino became a singer, retired at age 24, then became a pilot with the Japanese Spatial Defense Force. She eventually developed a relationship with a shapeshifting bronze dragon named Balzar.  
  
Rei Hino took over the Hino Shrine after her grandfather's retirement, but found time for the occasional lunar trip to visit Usagi and the others.  
  
Makoto Kino opened her bakery and flower shop on the L-5 colony. During the Colony Wars she moved to Crystal Tokyo with her friends.  
  
Haruka and Michiru became members of the Outer Defense Patrol, to absolutely no one's surprise.  
  
Setsuna Meiou relocated to Crystal Tokyo during the Colony Wars, where she continued her career as a designer of attractive and practical clothing for people who lived in variable gravities.  
  
Luna and Artemis accompanied Mamoru and Usagi. Luna ended up with ulcers and Artemis eventually decided to take on a job at the "Voice Of Crystal Tokyo and the Moon Kingdom - Serenity Live" with a TV talk show and radio program that included advice to "all the young princes and princesses out there."  
  
The Dead Moon, Nemesis, and host of other Sailor menaces failed to show up. When Galaxia did show, she did not face a handful of Senshi and a largely ignorant populace. She faced dragons, powerful mages, starships capable of detecting and blowing away Earthbound asteroids, Senshi, Saints, and superpowered androids. Most of whom either did not have Star Seeds or had powerful defenses against magic of that sort and very little sympathy for someone trying death magic out on them.  
  
Furinkan Senior High School gained a reputation for producing well educated but often strange students.  
  
Kentaro Takaoka and Sleeze Productions tried to put out one last video. After the various legal manueverings were finished, the amount of debt levied on him, his employers, and everyone involved in the making of that video was sufficient to pay Japan's UN dues for over a century. Kentaro suffered the usual fate of those who have made themselves out to be a major embarassment to the Yakuza.  
  
Morgana Le Fay had a nice long "chat" with the wizard named Harry who had left a spellbook in Nerima where some kids could find it. Harry spent thirty years as a frog as an object lesson. Morgana went on to become an advisor to the Tendo School Of Magical Arts.  
  
The Midgard Serpent had been blown to bits, and those bits slowly began to link up and regenerate. However it would take over 10,000 years to get back into anything approaching fighting strength.  
  
The feedback to the Imperial Security center in Hokkaido on Imperial Earth was less than .00001% of the explosion in Niffleheim. That was still quite considerable in terms of explosions. The damage to Imperial Japan was such that most of the other Empires seized the opportunity to seize large sections of the Japanese Empire. So while the Japanese Empire survived on that world, it was not nearly as powerful as it had been and was no longer able to plan that final push to conquer the other empires.  
  
Maid unit Yvette was accepted as a worker at Disneyland Tokyo where she found having skills like being fluent in thirty languages enormously useful.  
  
Animeland was built and became quite popular as most of Cyberdyne was moved to the lower levels. Even if people knew the characters were actually androids, the roles were played so well and the "ambience" fit together sufficiently that those who enjoyed such things were quite happy with the experience. Then there were those who came to meet aliens, or view the technology involved, and a variety of other reasons.  
  
Thor was sufficiently happy over the fight he'd just gotten into, and the one he'd just postponed for what was a serious amount of time even for an Asgardian, that he and Sif were expecting a daughter just a few months later. He was a little taken aback that he would not be allowed a Space Cruiser Yamato of his very own, but these things happened.  
  
Snoopy went on to become a member of the Outer Defense Patrol, with his Sopwith Camel a common sight in the Kuiper Belt - always keeping an eye out for the red tri-wing of his dreaded nemesis.  
  
Earth itself underwent a few changes. The technology of antigrav and portable fusion generators remained largely "black boxed" - restricted knowledge since the potential for misuse was so great. Japan benefitted enormously, as did England, the United States, Australia, and other countries where Cyberdyne lift platforms reduced the price of getting a large payload into high orbits to about $50/ton. When the Brazilian lift platform was seized by the government and experts swarmed in to uncover the secrets, the lift platform mysteriously fused all electronics within 100 square miles including the black boxes within. As that ended the South American presence of Cyberdyne and the economic boom of that country slid into depression, the lesson was picked up by other countries who made damn sure that everyone in their employ knew not to kill the goose laying those golden eggs.  
  
Earth began depopulating in some areas, particularly when the LaGrange colonies were being constructed. Opportunity knocked and while some returned in defeat, more followed the siren call of a better life onward into space.  
  
The rich and the poor stayed where they were, for the most part. It was mainly the young, the dreamers, those with wanderlust burning in their veins, or similar groups that went out into the solar system. Some ended up in familiar roles. A farmer was a farmer, whether a dusty track in Mexico or the inside of a dome on Mars. Most machines were electric and electricians and mechanics found plenty of work in their chosen field.  
  
Some industries found the lure of space promising. New alloys could be forged in low gravity, glass and textiles woven, bio-engineering with a natural failsafe and containment procedure, raw materials in plenty as long as you knew where to look and weren't after the purely organic. Ships were built to take advantage of the fact that they spent their whole existence in zero g and no atmosphere. Starkly functional, gaudily painted, or artistically flamboyant.  
  
People died, of course. Space was an unforgiving environment. Statistics that all newcomers to space were quickly presented with, and increased constantly. This many people died from ramming an asteroid or other rock. This many people died from smoke or other toxic atmospheric fouling. This many people died from accidents where they directly experienced vaccuum.   
  
When Cyberdyne opened the first Stargate in 2011, other systems began to see human colonization. Alpha Centauri. Epsilon Eridani. New Jeruselam. Earthlike worlds were found and worlds where Galaxia had destroyed all life, but they could be reclaimed now.  
  
By 2065, the number of sentient races known to man was over two dozen. By 2100, humanity had met fifty races and got along with ten of them! (Which itself was almost unheard of among the more established races.) Part of this was because the leading edge of humanity were the enthusiasts, the ones with the spark in their hearts who wanted to *see* things beyond the pale.  
  
There were those on Earth who declaimed the whole thing, and wept about the path humankind had taken. The glittering crystal city on the moon. The canals and boulevards and domed cities of Mars. The terraforming operations on Venus. The extrasolar colonies and the undersea cities and the shanty towns in the asteroid belt.   
  
These detractors pointed out to the wars in the Middle East, the bloody battles in Africa, the floods in India, the towns and cities largely abandoned by their inhabitants in Japan and the United States among other countries. The Saint Wars, the Colony Wars, the Luddite Rebellion, the volcano of Beijing and the Brazilian Uprising. The strange weather patterns, the current teen fashions, the occasional piece of space junk surviving re-entry, the rumors of Bigfoot. See, they cried out, see the horrors that this prosperity has wrought?   
  
After all, they pointed out, before the dragon had come - none of these things existed. Humanity's destiny had been stolen from it, and man had no business in space with so much suffering on Earth.  
  
And those that remained behind listened. And those that pursued their dreams pursued them.  
  
And Ranma Saotome had a large number of children and many of them went on to become heroes in their own right.  
  
But that, as they say, is a story for another time.  
  
===========  
  
SAILOR URANUS:  
World Shaking - mana bolt (Earth)  
Space Sword Blaster - cutting/penetrating attack using sword talisman.  
Earth Shattering - cone shaped vibratory attack  
Ground Breaking - defensive attack. Causes an earthen wall or dome to form from nearest supply.  
Meteor - Ultimate. summons a meteor.  
Transport: Lemon yellow 1967 Ford Mustang. 360 engine with fusion helper motor. anti-grav equipped.  
Mecha: Yellow Lynx - Laser claw. Best melee fighter of the mecha.  
  
  
  
(1) Opening theme, VanDread stage two  
  
EPILOGUE:  
  
Hotaru straightened her flying gear and slung the helmet under one arm. Everything was ready. Everything in place.  
  
When she looked up, her smile was as if the sun had broken through clouds. "Sempai. It's time."  
  
  
  
OMAKE OMAKE OMAKE  
  
  
  
Amaterasu looked over the pool. "No Kodachi matchups?"  
  
Toltiir gestured. "You want to see a Kodachi story?"  
  
"Not really, no," whined the Ranma who'd recently tried to beat an Elder god into giving him a favor. Which explained why he was currently 24cm tall and in a bird cage.  
  
--------  
  
Little Kodachi Kuno sniffled. Looking for meaning in her life after a common thug had killed her mother, she wandered here.  
  
One of the Kuno labs, where Papa-san was known to do some strange things.  
  
"Miss Kuno," said the little bucktoothed ninja. "You shouldn't be in here. Your father is experimenting with genetic splicing and radioactivity here. Very dangerous."  
  
Kodachi glared at the frequent guardian of the Kuno children. "I know. A spider just bit me."  
  
"Oh dear!" Sasuke said. "Well, let's get you cleaned up."  
  
-------  
  
SPIDERGIRL, an omake by Gregg Sharp  
  
"Spidergirl, Spidergirl,  
A kunoichi with a twirl,  
Spins a web - any size,  
Catches thieves, just like flies,  
Look out - here comes the Spidergirl."  
  
"Is she strong? Listen bud,  
she's got radioactive blood!  
Villains out, spreading crime,  
with the speed of light,  
She'll arrive just in time!"  
  
"Hey there, here comes the Spidergirl!"  
  
--------  
  
"WHAT?! How exactly does this make her less nutzoid?!"  
  
Toltiir looked up at the Ranma in the birdcage. "Simple. The Kuno family has a genetic anomaly that causes insanity. However in Nerima that's hardly as noticeable as it would be outside that area, right? She just received a massive jolt to her system. She's also been 'rewarded by the Heavens' to 'pursue a sacred duty' and act in the manner of a samurai by protecting the weak and punishing the wicked. So she's a little less crazy and channels what's left in an entirely new direction."  
  
--------  
  
"Kodachi! Hi!" Akane called out. "You wouldn't believe what just happened to me!"  
  
"You were engaged against your will to the son of a vagrant martial artist?" Kodachi guessed.  
  
"You heard, huh?" Akane shook her head. "He is *such* a jerk. In a way he's as creepy as that Spidergirl!"  
  
"I don't know, Akane, some ninja girl running around beating guys up? From what I'd heard of you, I'd have thought you'd approve of her," suggested Kodachi with a smile.  
  
"Hah! Okay, the beating up lowlifes and Yakuza I can get behind," admitted Akane. "But the whole spider ninja thing is entirely too creepy."  
  
Kodachi shrugged. "To some degree, I must agree with you. For such as ourselves, with noble samurai ancestry, to associate with a ninja would be scandalous."  
  
"That's not quite the point," said Akane, aware they'd had this conversation before. "Anyway did you hear about the diamond smugglers?"  
  
"Oh, please Akane. Such a boorish topic. Tell me more about this fiance of yours instead." Kodachi smiled at her clueless, if nice, friend.  
  
Akane scowled.  
  
-------  
  
Ranma stared as Akane walked away with that other girl. He was hidden. He was sure of it. Yet this other girl had looked directly at him and *smirked.*  
  
He was also getting conflicting signals from her. Something told him she was really good at fighting, but the girl sure didn't act like she was ready for a fight. He'd have to keep a close eye on her.  
  
------  
  
Two days later:  
  
Spidergirl fell, the spreading numbness from the gas causing her to miss a handhold. Thwip!  
  
Not that that really mattered when you had your handy dandy webshooters.  
  
Snag!  
  
Spidergirl blinked behind her mask as she was lifted up by a powerfully built male physique.  
  
"Don't worry, I gotcha!"  
  
Spidergirl politely didn't point out that she had a webline to the next building.  
  
"This is too dangerous for girls," pointed out Ranma.  
  
*WHAM!* *splash!*  
  
Using spider-speed and spider-strength to knock Akane's fiance out of the path of several poison-tipped throwing knives, Spidergirl felt that there might be some merit to the statement. If one were not granted such boons as the aforementioned speed, strength, and ability to sense incoming danger.  
  
"You watch out, whoever you are," said Spidergirl called after Ranma.  
  
A redhaired girl leapt onto the rooftop. "HEY! Whatta ya mean knocking me into the water?!"  
  
Thwip! Spidergirl sent a webline out. "They're getting away. Better go home... you're a girl now?"  
  
"Oh hell," said the girl, looking at her shirt, then back at the now dwindling form of the ninja.  
  
Spidergirl loved this part, a highspeed chase over the rooftops, speeding along in an acrobatic blur of motion that was as much of an adrenalin rush as one of velocity.  
  
There! The van was coming to a stop at a red light.  
  
(pant!) (wheeze!) (gasp!) "you're... pretty fast."  
  
"Shhhh. They'll hear us," Spidergirl indicated. Though she was a little impressed. This was hardly a normal girl if she could keep up with her for very long.  
  
(pant!) (gasp!) "...who?!..."  
  
"Slaver ring, they've been kidnapping young girls and smuggling them off to Hong Kong," whispered Spidergirl. "Once they reveal their headquarters, I can deal with the viper in its nest."  
  
(gasp!) "...oh..." (wheeze!)  
  
"There they go," said Spidergirl, getting ready to spring into action again.  
  
(gulp!) "No way. It's too dangerous for..." Ranma watched the girl moving off into the distance. "Okay, maybe *some* girls aren't exactly weak and fragile."  
  
----------  
  
One month later:  
  
"So you do this all the time, Kodachi?"  
  
Spidergirl knew he'd been there, the accusation was a surprise however. "I'm Spidergirl, the ninja who strikes for justice. I don't have a 'little long sword'."  
  
"I know it's you, Kodachi. I'm good enough at the Art I can tell that kinda thing," said Ranma.   
  
"I don't have time for whatever you're pushing," said Spidergirl. "That vehicle over there is being used by the Yakuza to ferry narcotics into the area. Worse, supposedly they have a 'gaijin tarento' (foreign talent) by the name of Bullseye."  
  
"I don't... He any good?"  
  
"Supposed to be a professional assassin. Anything that comes to hand is a deadly weapon for him. Knows some strange martial art, possibly a unique one." Spidergirl pointed. "That unsavory looking fellow in spandex is likely him."  
  
Ranma blinked. "Okay. When do we strike?"  
  
---------  
  
Mimir's Well:  
  
Ranma groaned. Toltiir snickered. Not many Elder gods could get away with snickering.  
  
Images skidded past the surface of the Well.  
  
Spidergirl swinging into combat with thugs, Yakuza, and supervillains.  
  
A reluctantly masked Ranma Saotome as "Martial Arts Guy" (before Kodachi was finally able to get him to change his costumed name to Striker and his twin sister Kicker) getting some decent fights in against thugs, Yakuza, and the occasional supervillain.  
  
Shampoo shows up, gets kidnapped by Electro, rescued by Striker, finds out that Striker is Ranma is the outsider girl. Finds out that Akane is really upset about Ranma being gone most nights, and determines that she enjoys beating up stupid outsider men - particularly supervillain types. Mountain Girl starts showing up.  
  
An adventure involving Spidergirl, Thor, Striker, and Doctor Strange ending up with Ranma cured of the Catfist - except that he now powers up into a weretiger he now calls Tigerboy (causing looks of disgust from everyone else as he declares this.) His cure for the Jusenkyo curse lasts until Mousse splashes him with Spring Of Drowned Duck water, causing his old Jusenkyo curse to renew. Brief scene of Ranma beating the holy heck out of Mousse.  
  
Cologne shows up, determines why Shampoo is still in Japan and thinks the whole thing is good training. Opens the Cat Curio Shop to perform a support role and hope that these experiences broaden Shampoo's horizons enough to eventually lead the tribe.  
  
Spidergirl, Mountain Girl, and Tigerboy discover Spatgirl. Spatgirl finds a relationship going between Tigerboy and Spidergirl. Spatgirl starts going into vengeance mode, only to be rescued when she's kidnapped by Akuma No Oni. Spatgirl spends a lot of time thinking about this then going after a mysterious panda sighted in the Nerima area and committing serious panda abuse.  
  
Akane begins to warm up to the idea of Spidergirl not being a bad guy after the fourth "everyone get together and rescue Akane from this latest magical prince/supervillain/Yakuza thug" incident. At which point she figures out who Tigerboy is. Violence commences and Ranma is thrown out of the Tendo dojo.  
  
Ranma begins living in the Spidercave. The relationship deepens between he and Kodachi. And then...  
  
Toltiir smirked. "That... is a secret." 


End file.
